Rocking Chair
by 190nicolette190
Summary: Since I suck at writing summaries, I'm just going to say right now that there are five characters: Troy, Gabriella, and their first son, Talon, Troy's second son, Lyle, and Troy's daughter, Aubrey. Gabriella was killed by Troy's ex-girlfriend after giving birth to Talon. God gave her a second chance at life. Blah blah blah, here they are today.
1. Prologue

Everything was quiet.

Nothing stirred, nothing moved.

The only sound made was a rocking chair, squeaking along the floor.

An 19 year old freshman in college, rocking in a rocking chair.

Staring at the bed.

Brown, short hair, dark blue eyes.

Sexy body.

He looked up at the girl sitting on the bed.

A 15 year old sophmore in high school, brown haired beauty, with short, pulled back hair.

Brown eyes.

Sexy body.

They both looked guilty.

Severely guilty.

For what?

It wasn't like their lives had been torn apart... Right?

Or had their lives been torn?

He looked upon his phone, touched a couple buttons, and turned his phone to the side, where he started texting. When he was done, he shoved it back into his pocket and crossed his fingers.

She sat guiltily on the bed. Nothing moved her, nor any sounds came from her mouth.

"So... What do we do now?" He said, looking at her.

She bit her lip and played with the blanket a little. "I don't know. What do you say we do next?"

He pulled his phone back out of his pocket and read the text, texted back, and shoved it back into his pocket. "I don't know about you, but I'm getting sick of staring at these walls.

She swung her feet over the edge of the bed and touched the floor with her feet gently. "You'd rather stare at the walls than me, right?"

Silence.

He rocked back and forth. "I never said that."

"But you're thinking that, aren't you?" She walked towards the sink and turned it on. "Why the hell did this slut mess up your life? You know what, Troy, I really don't know why, but if I could kill myself right now, I would do it."

He continued to rock.

He could hear a faint noise coming from the sink that made his skin crawl.

He still rocked on.

The sink turned off.

A trail of blood followed Gabriella to the bed. She winced. "God damn sink's broke."

"Maybe you shouldn't have did that then." He stared directly at the wall, still rocking.

"Why the fuck would you care anyway... " She chuckled and wiped her bloody wrists on a towel. "All you care about is Ally. Don't have any respect for this girl at all. Fuck her. Go to Ally's Do you really care about me?"

He was silent for a moment, then spoke. "Was that a rhetorical question?"

She shook her head, chuckling. "Sure, asshole."

Silence fell upon the room.

"I'm not staying here; I'm going to Ally's." He stood up and walked towards the door.

"I hope you're happy." She muttered under her breath.

"I'm far from happy." He slammed the door.

What was their commonplace? Why were they sitting in a hospital room together?

This is for me to know, and for you to find out.


	2. Fall

(A/N: I will try to describe Gabriella and Troy as closely as I can possible to myself and the real guy I am basing this on. I can't get exact, though, because he has brown eyes in real life, and I have blue eyes and dark blonde hair. But, I will try to get as close as I can. I will warn you, a lot of these things I will say about Gabriella are what I deal with every day in life. So, you'll find out about my life here, which I have never been able to express before. So, almost everything I'll say in this chapter is what happens in my everyday life.)

The Autumn wind swirled around the school, picking leaves up and carrying them off to another world. They fluttered in the air, high above the treetops, soaring over the patterned blue sky... No leaf landed in the same exact spot, nor did one teenager's footsteps.

You may get everything close, but nothing can be exact, to the tiniest measurement unit.

_Nothing_ can be exact.

As the wind blows, it picks up tufts of straight, short, brown hair that rested upon a young girl's shoulders. A sweet, innocent, Freshman in high school.

Her top priorities were school, and it showed. She had very close to 100% in every class, aced every test there was, and even spent time helping some of the other unfortuanate minds. Everybody else hated her, because she wasn't the best in sports and was a "nerd".

She didn't care what they called her. She was there to make the grade, not to be a nerd.

At school, she had many, many friends. But not the best friends she could have chosen for herself. Her first friend was one that she had been friends with since fourth grade. This girl was into the emo guys and the emo hair... Which Gabriella didn't like. The rest of her friends were into the same thing, dying their hair weird colors and secretly smoking marajuana in the alley behind the school without her knowing.

But, she did know.

She knew all about it.

She never did any of that stuff. Her parents taught her right, and showed her the right way.

So they thought they taught her right...

After school, all she did was stay inside and be a hermit. She sat on her computer and did nothing. She played with her dogs and cats a little, moped around while her parents complained about getting their drugs because they "hurt", and had a rougher life than anyone at school saw on the outside. Her parents bought her many expensive things to keep her "occupied" so they wouldn't have to deal with her, althought their many cries of love resulted in nothing. No show of love at all.

But, this sweet, broken girl had a second life...

If she could express her feelings, she would be a party girl, out drinking and dancing with random people. She would get up on tables and shake it with an old man. She would show her body off to boys, become a stripper, a prostitute. She _wanted_ to get pregnant, just to get the attention from that baby, the love and care her parents told her that they had for her, but never really showed it.

_Anything_ to get the attention she wasn't getting at home.

She wanted to cut herself so somebody would pay attention. She wanted to get pregnant so she would get attention. She wanted a boyfriend to get attention. She wanted sex because she wanted to feel that love that she never felt from anybody around her...

_She just wanted to be loved..._

_ And nobody seemed to care about that..._

She looked up as the bus pulled up.

Tons of kids lined up behind her, and of course, as always, she was the last one on the bus, because everyone crowded her.

She climbed to the third to the last seat and sat down, looking over at her trailer. She had grown up there, hated the trailer park, hated the trailer, and just wanted to get out and spread her wings.

But, what did her parents spend money on?

_Heroine._

_ They could have moved out if they had spent that money on something different, like bills, lot rent, more bills..._

She shook the thought out of her head as the idiotic kids, in seventh, eighth, and one in ninth grade made sounds of sex, screaming, moaning, and groaning like their boyfriend was riding them, or they were riding their girlfriend. She rolled her eyes, brought her knees to her chest, and watched out the window.

A eighth grader behind her started humping the seat, and everyone in the back was laughing hysterically. All she could feel was a knee in the back, which was pushing her back and forth on the seat.

With disgust, she turned her ipod on and all the way up.

But, she could still hear the noises.

He humped the seat again.

The bus driver up front smiled a little, and then yelled at them.

It didn't help.

He humped the seat again.

More screams of sex.

Humping.

Moaning.

Humping.

Screaming like they were having an orgasm.

Humping.

"WILL YOU FUCKING QUIT?" Gabriella turned around and faced the kid humping her seat. He laughed at her and retreated.

Once again, he started humping the seat.

"I SWEAR TO FUCKING GOD KID, IF YOU DON'T QUIT, I'LL CHOP YOUR DICK AND BALLS OFF SO YOU CAN'T HAVE SEX!" She growled.

"Alright, fine!" He said, chuckling as he sat down. "What are you going to do with them? Fuck yourself and get pregnant?"

"No, squeeze all the sperm out of them and put it in your sippy cup before you go to bed in your superman undies." Gabriella rolled her eyes and sighed.

He humped the seat again.

A freshman in front of her turned around. "DUDE, WILL YOU STOP MAKING THOSE FUCKING NOISES?" He screamed at the kid behind Gabriella. "YOU'RE SO FUCKING ANNOYING!"

"DOESN'T IT GET ANNOYING?" Gabriella glared at the eighth grader.

The eighth grader slunk down in his seat.

As the bus arrived at the high school, the eighth and seventh graders walked down to the parking lot to get picked up by another bus, which transports them to the Junior High.

She waited for two friends to get off the bus.

She passed her large group of friends, the ones who love emos and goths, and the ones who do drugs and smoke behind the school where the cameras aren't pointed.

Her two friends went into the first building while she walked clear to the back building, where she waited in the pouring rain for the doors to open.

As the bell rang, she placed her keycard against the identifier on the door and grabbed the door quickly, opening it for everyone. She walked inside and to her first block. A block.

English.

Romeo and Juliet.

Hell on wheels.

She got to see Romeo's ass last week. What now? Juliet's ass?

As she got there, she slunk into her seat and set her things down beside her.

The days always started rough.

After English came Spanish 1.

She walked quickly with her friend, while her friend retreated to German.

Gabriella stepped into the room, sat in her seat, and groaned, setting her face in her hands.

And then, she saw him...

He was always the last one in class.

She always walked past him coming from English because he had to drop off his precious Freshman girlfriend Ally to her first class.

She was a church goer who thought about nothing but god. She believed in abstinance and god.

That's it.

He was a tall, dark haired, blue eyed senior.

His name was Troy Bolton.

He was the QB of the football team, and was the sweetest guy she had ever met.

They never had officially met, anyway.

He sat in his seat, far away from her, as class started.

She never thought anything of him until that one day came...

The day that she craved and needed to have.

The day that she had felt love for the first time...


	3. Preguntas Español

Waiting outside homeroom was torture.

Her only good friend walked past her, and complained about her homeroom period

But, she wasn't even good. She talked about Gabriella behind her back.

Gabriella happened to look over, seeing a blonde girl leaning against the locker. Troy had his hand on the locker, leaning over her, not letting her go. A grin slipped from the corner of his mouth as his lips moved, but no words were heard by Gabriella. He leaned down and engaged in a long, disgusting kiss with Ally.

She turned her head and shivered.

"Jesus christ... " She swore to herself.

...

Later on that day, she was stopped outside of school from Troy.

"Hey, you're in my Spanish class, aren't you?" He stood in front of her.

She could feel the vibrance bouncing off his skin. All seniors were vibrant.

"Yeah."

"You're Gabriella, right?"

She nodded.

"I have a question." He backed her against a wall. "Are you single?"

She raised an eyebrow. "Why would you want to know? You're dating Ally."

"Was." He played with his fingers a little. "We broke up."

She laughed. "Didn't seem like that to me when you were making out with her against the locker."

Troy crossed his arms. "We literally just broke up. Anyway, answer my question."

She smiled a little, flustering inside. "Yes, Troy Bolton, I'm single."

"Okay, then... " He smiled at her. "Then that means there's not going to be a boyfriend guarding you at your house later on if I come over for help with Spanish?"

"No?"

He pulled out his Spanish textbook. "Look, I've been having a little trouble with Spanish lately. You think you could help me out later on?"

She chuckled a little. "Are you trying to pull me or something?"

"No, I just wanted a little help with Spanish. I took French four times, and it's confusing learning two different languages."

She crossed her arms. "Okay then, Mr. Senior, smartest guy in the class, I'll help you if you come to my house later on. My parents are going out of town for a couple hours, so I won't get pounded on for bringing a boy into my house."

He grinned a little. "Rendez-vous ce soir, ma dame."

"What's that supposed to mean, Frenchie?"

"See you tonight, my lady." He walked off and boarded his bus.

Her friends surrounded her.

"Did you seriously just get asked on a date by Troy Bolton?" Each one of them said.

"Spanish help." She replied to them all. "Nothing major. He broke up with Ally and blah blah blah."

She _thought_ nothing major would happen...


	4. Te Amo No, Señor Troy

She could hear a couple knocks at the door.

She pulled three dogs back, a Golden Retriever, an Australian Shepherd, and a dog that wasn't hers, a Pit Bull and Great Dane mix.

"Guys, get back!" She groaned and opened the door.

"Oh, hi Troy... " She pulled all three of the dogs out of the way.

George, the Pit Bull and Great Dane, snarled and showed his teeth.

"George, go lay down!" Gabriella pointed to the couch. He obeyed.

She grabbed Troy's hand and walked him past her two other dogs, then went into her room and slammed the door shut.

"They're rambuncious. I'm sorry." She put her foot in front of Marley's nose as she stuck it under the door.

"It's alright. I've got Dobie and a Rottie at my house. They're so lovable that they don't know what to do when people come in."

Gabriella ran her fingers through her hair and sat on her bed. He set his things down, admiring her room.

"Wow... It's pretty girly in here... "

Her room was covered in three pink walls, and one blue one which was waiting to be painted. She had a pink blanket with purple sheets and pillows, and every piece of furniture was hand-carved wood. A couple pieces of artwork were shown in her curio cabinet, along with some momentos from Disney World.

He grabbed his book from his backpack and sat upon her bed with her.

He turned to the first page.

"Okay, so... What do you need help with?"

_He was a faker. He knew everything in that book like the back of his hand._

"School supplies."

"Materiales Escolares."

"Backpack."

"Mochila."

"Disk."

"Disquete."

He put his finger to his lip.

"To carry."

"Llevar."

"Orange."

"Anaranjado."

"Books."

"Libros. Anything else?"

He shook his head.

She grinned a little, knowing he knew everything in the book.

But what would he want in her?

Nobody liked her.

Not even Troy.

_She thought._

"Did you really break up with Ally?" She looked over at him.

"Yeah. We broke up." He wrote down something in his notebook. "We just weren't getting along."

_Liar. I saw you making out with her right across the street before you dropped her off at her house._

Gabriella fluffed her pillow up a little and layed her head on it behind him as his feet hung over the edge of the bed. He looked over at her, chuckling.

"Tired, huh?"

"Nah, not really. Just a little upset. Nothing to worry about."

"What are you upset about?" He shut his paper in his book.

"High school. Damn immature kids making sex moans in the back. Kid was humping the seat behind me. Just everything. I'm so fucking sick of it."

He turned towards her a little more. "They'll grow up."

"It sure is taking them a long time." Gabriella pulled her body up a little and rested her hand across her chest.

He breathed a large breath.

"Are you getting a ride to school from anyone? If the people on the bus are annoying you that bad, I'll take you to school and back. If it's a hassle with your parents, I'll wait at the end of the drive down there for you so they don't see."

She looked over at him. "Thanks for the offer, but I don't know if it will work out."

"Well, if there's a time you don't want to ride the bus, just text me and I'll come get you. Here... " He pulled his phone out. "What's your number?"

"Don't have a phone." She sighed. "My parents tell me they will turn it on, but haven't yet."

"Oh." He said, turning his phone off and putting it back in his backpack.

A moment of silence fell upon them.

"How tall are you?" She looked over at him.

"Six foot. You?"

She giggled a little. "Oh god, I'm five one. Haven't grown an inch or gained a pound since fifth grade."

He smiled a little and ran his hand across his hair. "You'll get there. I was stuck for a couple years. Then, all of a sudden, I spurted up, my voice got deeper, and my balls dropped."

She laughed at that one.

"I never thought you were a dirty person, Troy."

He cracked a little smile. "I'm usually not. How long are your parents going to be gone?"

"I don't know. They'll probably be gone until two. They went to Strongsville to see my mamaw."

He raised an eyebrow. "This late?"

"Yep."

"Do they always go out this late?"

"They're night-goers. They complain all day because of toothaches and back pain, and it gets annoying. They go buy heroine from my Uncle- "

Her eyes got big.

"Heroine?" He scratched the side of his head. "They're shooters?"

"No, not by any means. They use the straw... "

"Oh... " He played with his fingers a little. "That must suck."

"Yeah... I sit here all day and be bored, because they don't go out and do anything. They just sit back there all day. They buy me things to keep me occupied, probably so I don't bother them. They always tell me that they love me but... "

"But you don't believe it?" He said softly.

"No, I just don't think they really mean it." She pulled her shirt down a little farther. "I've never really felt love. Just from my dogs and my kitties. That's pretty much it."

He looked down at Marley's nose sticking through the bottom of the door. "You've never had your first kiss?"

She shook her head.

"You've never had a boyfriend?"

Once again, she shook her head.

"Are you still a virgin?"

She nodded.

"Wow... " He looked down at the bed. "I couldn't imagine not being love by my parents, or by anyone else."

She chuckled a little, a tear rolling off the side of her face. "Yeah, it's not fun."

He looked over at her. "Well, I think you deserve love. You're very pretty and I would have never guessed you've never had a boyfriend."

"Nobody at school likes me. No boys. No girls. They all think I'm just a fucking nerd. I'm not good at sports or gym, and I'm short and skinny, and they just think I'm... A nerd."

She could tell he was beginning to feel bad. She stopped talking, because she didn't want him to feel bad for her.

"I can't imagine what you're going through." He shook his head. "I'm so sorry you have to go through that... Nobody should."

A moment of silence fell upon them once again.

She stared off into space, wondering what it would feel like to really feel love, and have someone love her...

He looked directly into her eyes. "Do you want someone to love you?"

"Yeah." She looked over at him. "I've wanted a boyfriend for a long time now... "

He pulled his body up and crawled over to her. "I can help you find a little love..."

"Where?" She said, not paying attention to where he was. "Where would that be?"

"Right here... " He whispered in her ear.

She turned her head a little, following his eyes as she knew what was about to happen.

Before she knew it, he had his shoes and socks off, his shirt off, and was over her.

She unzipped her jeans, and he slid them down her slender, smooth legs. He discarded them at the end of the bed.

Without even thinking any more, he grabbed the end of her shirt and pulled it over her head.

She wanted to be loved so, so badly...

She didn't want to waste any time. She sat up a little, and he unclasped her bra from behind, sliding it off her arms and throwing it across the room.

He sat up a little as he could feel her shivers beneath his body, and turned the light off. He pulled her pink blanket up, and then pulled her underwear off.

The only sound heard was her panting and the sound of his belt being loosened. He unzipped his pants, then pulled them down.

He did the same with his boxers.

And before she knew it, she felt his hands across her breasts. She threw her head back in angst, trying to hold back a moan.

"No, no time for that... " She grabbed his shoulders. "I don't want to wait... I want love... I want it now... " She cried into his ear.

She drew her legs up slightly and out, opening her gates to him. She grasped one of his hands, since she was new to this and he was not. But, it didn't help, because he hammered into her hard the first time unexpectedly, trying to beat the tensing of her muscles to get down as far as he could. He had obviously done this a couple times before, and was to used to it that he forgot she was a virgin and wasn't used to the feeling.

She let go of his hand and gripped the bedsheets as he slid down a little farther.

He pulled up, and without another word, stroked into her a couple times at a slow, steady pace. Even thought it was the slowest he could possibly go, she couldn't bear it. She yelped and tensed up, pulling herself back with a tear running down her cheek. He drew out of her and wiped her tear away with his thumb. "It'll hurt a little bit at first, but you'll get used to it."

She sobbed and nodded slowly.

"Open your legs up so I can get in again... I'll talk you through it, alright?"

She nodded again, and took his hand.

"I'm not trying to hurt you on purpose... " He positioned himself in a spot where he knew she would be a little more comfortable with. "Try not to be so tense as I'm going down, because it'll hurt more and make it harder for me to get down there. And open your legs a little more, because it'll be harder for you to tensen."

She obeyed his every word.

She could feel the tip of his dick rubbing across her opening.

And suddenly, he pushed into her, and slowly pushed himself further down.

She bit her lip, then tensed.

"No, not any further... " She shook her head. "That's it."

He let go of her hand and grabbed her hip, then her side, pushing himself a little further. "Alright, I'm going to go slow, but don't get so tense that I can't move... "

She seemed a little lost as what to do next. He chuckled a little, took his hand off her side, and without withdrawing from her, pushed her body onto the pillow a little more. "You can hold my shoulders if you don't feel comfortable."

She quickly slapped her hands on his shoulders.

"Now you let me do all the work." He grabbed her side once again, and started off slow.

It took all of her might not to cry.

He sped up a tiny bit, watching her face carefully to make sure that she wasn't in too much pain.

Suddenly, she relaxed a little.

She was starting to get used to the pain.

Within a couple more seconds, he felt her body loosen beneath him, and she wrapped her legs around his waist.

He moved back a little, giving her a little smile, and knew she was ready to start seriously.

He started pounding into her, making her so shocked that she let go of his shoulders and gripped the sheets. He gripped her hip harder with his hand. Her face showed complete, pure pleasure.

He slammed into her a couple times more and picked the pace up, going the speed that he knew she wanted.

She let him go down a little further, feeling a large spot in her body become loose.

With every ten seconds, she let him go a little further down until she knew where she would cum at. He became melodic with his movements as he waited patiently for her to let go and let him go into that one spot that would make her cry with pain.

She looked up at him, and he slowed a little. "You alright?"

She nodded.

"Are you ready for it?"

Without regret, she nodded again.

As he picked up speed, he tried harder and harder to get to that spot, but she just didn't let go.

He sped up almost to his maximum speed, trying to get down there.

Finally, she let go. She yelped again, a couple tears rolling down her cheeks as he pounded into that spot, filling his body with pleasure and satisfication. He groaned against her neck, pushing himself in deeper. He whispered to her that she was doing great, then knew that she was ready to start experiencing it fully.

He knew how to make a girl melt beneath him.

He jacked himself up, and she looked up at him, about to complain from him stopping.

Without her even knowing, he hammered into her at such a fast pace she screeched with pleasure.

She arched her back into him, pleasure flowing through her veins like a drug. She moaned and screamed, feeling the love that she was dying to feel.

He groaned, then felt her body begin to tighten.

She was almost there.

He hammered into her as hard and as fast as he could push his body to go. She let out a couple screams as her body tensed totally, and she arched into him. She moaned loudly, with pleasure filling her heart, and held him in as he jabbed into her.

She felt his dick hitting the right spot, the spot that she needed him to hit. He hammered that spot, and she screamed again. Her body began to move in melodic motions with his.

Her body loosened, and she felt her muscles beginning to ache.

She whined a little as she hurt a little, but he shushed her, holding her cheek as he bent down towards her and planted a kiss upon her lips. She could still feel that he hadn't withdrawn yet.

He pulled back a little and dove in for more, kissing her with strides that were off the charts. His strong arms caged her in, not allowing her to move from his reins. She didn't want to move, anyway. She wanted to enjoy her first love experience, the first time she had ever felt love. It was so vivid and unimaginably beautiful that a couple tears fell from her eyes as he withdrew from her and ran his hand across her arm. He pulled his lips away from her, but didn't stop the kisses. He trailed down her neck and on her chest, between her breasts and down her stomach. He jumped over her bellybutton and stopped right above her vulva, planting a hard, sucking kiss on her, sucking so hard that he raised her head up a little as he tried to pull away. He moved back up to her forehead and planted one last kiss on her head.

He rolled off of her and sat staring at the ceiling.

His eyes were wide.

"Holy shit Gabriella... " He looked over at her with a large smile. "You're amazing."

She sat up in bed and pulled the blanket up to her chest, heaving. "I can't believe I just had sex with someone who isn't even my boyfriend... "

He looked over at her, and she looked back at him.

Suddenly, it was like a wave hit her.

_She had just become a slut._

She shook her head, sobbing as tears rolled down her cheeks. "This is so wrong... "

He found his boxers and slipped them over his legs. "You needed love, I helped you out." He smiled over at her, then realized she was crying. "Oh, Gabriella... It's not as bad as you think... "

She shut her eyes. "Yes it is! I just got fucked by a guy who just broke up with his girlfriend! You don't call that wrong?"

"No, not at all."

"Then you're a flaming idiot." She sighed. "You're not even my boyfriend."

He handed her her underwear and bra from the floor. "Well, would you be my girlfriend?" He looked up at her.

She quickly put them on. "Give me time to think about it, alright?"

"Alright." He replied.

"Don't think I love you, because I don't." She looked over at him. "This happened once, and it won't happen again."

Jokingly, he implied "Usted no me quiere, señorita Gabriela?". (You don't love me, miss Gabriella?)

She rolled her eyes. "No, te amo no." (No, I love you not.)


	5. Distracted

Guilt fell upon Gabriella.

She slunk on the bus, not bothering to yell at the kid humping the seat behind her, and dragged herself off the bus.

Out of the corner of her eye, she could see him.

What was he doing?

Making out with Ally.

_Fucking perv._

She rolled her eyes.

"Hey, why are you so... " Her friend, Marie, grabbed her shoulders and hugged her. "So... "

"Upset?" Gabriella turned around and wrapped her arms around her friend, pulling her into a big hug.

Her eyes filled with tears. She began pouring them on her friend.

"Awh, Gabriella, tell me!"

She had been friends with Marie since fourth grade. It hadn't occured to her that Marie had a big heart, because Marie usually was the girl hanging out with the skater guys with the emo hair.

Gabriella grabbed Marie's hand and pulled her off to the side of the school grounds. She looked over at Troy. "Him."

Marie turned around. "Troy Bolton? The senior QB?" She raised an eyebrow. "What's so good about him? He's an ass."

"I had sex with him last night." She bit her lip as Marie turned around, shocked.

"You did WHAT?"

She looked at the ground. "He asked me if he could get help on his Spanish, and I invited him over to my house. It just... Happened... "

Marie crossed her arms. "You had sex with a senior? The Quarter Back of the undefeated football team?" (A/N: Our football team in our actual school SUCKS. I wonder what it would be like to have a good football team. xD)

Innocently, Gabriella nodded.

"But you're so... quiet... and conserved and... and... so smart- "

"Nerdy?" Gabriella sighed. "Just say it. It doesn't bother me."

"The point is, how did you reel him in?"

"Like I said, I did nothing to instigate it."

Marie shook her head.

"Please, please don't tell anyone... " Gabriella grabbed Marie's arm. "I don't want to start any trouble."

"No, I won't." She sighed. "I just don't understand why I can't get myself some dick and you can." She stomped her foot. "Damn, I can't do anything!"

Gabriella rolled her eyes. "Sex isn't anything to be proud of. It hurts." She grabbed her friend's hand and pulled her towards the school as the bell rang. "I've never been in so much pain."

Marie chuckled. "Like that's going to stop me."

"You better hope it will."

...

Gabriella couldn't stop staring at Troy in Spanish.

She never really gave Troy any credit before as though he was just another person, but now, it was like he was the center of attention and the only person in the room.

"Gabriella!"

Gabriella turned and looked at the teacher. "Sorry... " She shook her head. "Just staring off into space. I'm truely sorry... "

Nothing made her more upset than the thought of being taken advantage of. She never wanted that to happen. She wanted a boyfriend who would take care of her and show her true love.

Troy didn't show her any of that. He _implied_ "Te amo", but didn't show any "Te amo". (Te amo - I love you)

She grasped her pencil in her hands.

Her head raced as the teacher explained the assignment, but she couldn't pay attention no matter how hard she tried.

All she could think about was Troy, and how they had sex last night.

"Alright, get to work." The teacher turned her head and glared at Gabriella.

Gabriella swore that teacher really hated her.

She turned to the right page in her book and read the question.

The first question read "Què alumnos en la sala de clase se notas buenas?" (What students in the classroom get good grades?).

She tapped her pencil against the desk.

_Los alumnos que obtienen buenas calificaciones son los alumnos que tienen relaciones sexuales todas las noches. _(The students who get good grades are the students who have sex every night.)

She shook the thought off.

_Sex..._

_Troy..._

She groaned and leaned back in her chair.

"This is worthless." She said to herself.

_Cheater._

_ What a fucking idiot..._

And suddenly, not a thought passed through her mind other than Troy.


	6. Caught

It was addicting.

It had been Gabriella and Troy's thirteenth time having sex since last month. Even though the secret had been floating around the school, both denied it.

Troy rolled off Gabriella, lying beside her in bed. He looked over at her naked body, which was turned the other way towards the wall.

"What's wrong?" He touched her shoulder and she jerked back. "Hey, why are you so upset?"

She shook her head with tears falling down her cheeks.

"Please tell me." He caressed her side with his thumb as he rolled towards her. "Did it really hurt that bad?"

She sighed and closed her eyes, pulling the blanket over her body. "No." She replied. "I'm a fucking slut who's addicted to sex. Happy, fucker?"

He sat up, raising an eyebrow. "I never thought you were anywhere near a slut. The only person you've been having sex with is me."

"Exactly. You have a girlfriend, and her name is Ally."

Troy chuckled. "I told you, we broke up."

"NO YOU DIDN'T! YOU'RE A DAMN LIAR!" She sat up, sobbing. "I feel like such a bitch!"

"You aren't! I promise!" He said, pulling her into a little hug. "You're a beautiful, young girl who just needs someone to love... "

"But that person isn't you." She looked over at him. "I can't love someone who still has a girlfriend."

"Ally isn't my girlfriend anymore! You are!"

She pulled her underwear and bra on and pulled the blankets back up while Troy put his boxers on. "I'm not hurting myself by being with you, Troy."

"I won't hurt you." He insisted.

"Whatever." Gabriella stood up and jumped off the bed. She opened her bedroom door.

"You want me to leave?" Troy raised an eyebrow and slipped his jeans on.

"Yeah." She looked down at the floor. "I don't want you here when my parents get home."

He pulled his black t-shirt over his head and and took Gabriella's brush, brushing his hair forward. He set it back down, pulling his jeans up as he walked out of her room. She followed him.

"You don't like me at all, do you?" He turned around as he stopped at the back door.

She bit her lip. "Yeah, I like you. But, what's the point in liking you if all you're going to do is have sex with me all the time?"

He leaned against the door, shoving his hands in his pockets. He chuckled a little. "Well, that's only because you said you wanted some love- "

She looked away from his eyes. "It's not love unless you love the other person, Troy."

He nodded in agreement. "Do you want to start out slowly or- "

"I don't want to start out at all. How many times do I have to tell you that?"

Troy sighed and grabbed the door handle. "You don't anymore." He said, opening the door.

A pair of headlights flashed and a car pulled into the driveway.

"Shit... " Troy muttered under his breath.

"Oh my god!" She grabbed Troy's arm. "Troy, hide in my bedroom!"

"What?" He said, shaking his head as he pushed him towards her bedroom. "No!"

"Please!" She pushed him forward as hard as she could into her bedroom. "Just go!"

She slammed the door in his face as her parents entered the house.

Surprisingly, they weren't high.

"Hey baby." Her dad walked into the house

Gabriella's heart pounded hard. "Hi dad. Where's mom?"

"She stayed at Trish's." He cocked his head at her. "Why do you look so nervous?"

She shook her head quickly, denying him. "No, I'm not nervous. Not at all."

He walked past her, and into her hallway.

"Where are you going?" She followed him closely.

"Into your room. You wanted to show me that art project earlier, remember?"

"No!" She blocked the front of her door. "I took it down!"

He grabbed the door handle. "Well, I'll go check it out- "

"NO! DON'T GO IN THERE!" She begged, shaking her head quickly and hard.

He pushed her back, and the door swung open.

Troy looked up. "Holy shit... "

Gabriella's eyes got wide. "Oh no... "

Gabriella's dad stared at Troy. "WHO THE HELL IS THIS?"

"He's my friend! He came over to do homework!"

"Then why were you trying to hide him from me?" He turned to her. "What the hell is going on?"

Gabriella looked innocently at Troy. "I tried, Troy... I really did... "

Gabriella's dad opened her door and stepped aside. "Get the fuck out of my house before I slice your throat... "

Without any hesitation, Troy raced out of the house.

He turned to Gabriella. "Must we have a little talk?"

She sobbed, shaking her head. "No, dad... " Tears rolled down her cheeks as she backed away from him. "Please... "

He grabbed the belt off the living room wall. "This is what happens when you bring boys into my fucking house... "


	7. Breaking Free

(A/N: This was what my two dreams were circled around. This chapter is what I actually dreamed. I guess you guys could have actually predicted this one, because its so obvious... xD)

Two weeks passed slowly.

Her normal light olive skin hid behind yellow, purple, black, and blue. She gobbed makeup on to cover her black eye. She hid herself in dark jeans and a dark sweatshirt.

Her dad never did that too her before. He hung the belt as a sign of peace in the house, because that belt was the one his father used to beat him as a child.

But never, never did she think he would use it to hit her.

Not in a million years.

But the worst part was that something had went drastically wrong...

She walked into Spanish.

Troy sat across the room in his usual spot, not being able to stop staring at her.

He could see the purple and yellow bruisesspeckling her hand.

"Get a partner, and work on page 308." The teacher said, retreating to her desk.

Automatically, she was tapped on the shoulder by Troy.

"Partners?"

Hesitation built inside her.

"I need to talk to you." He sighed.

She looked up at him with an innocent, helpless, look on her face.

"Alright." She said in such a small voice that it was almost a whisper.

She picked her book up and moved to the back of the classroom, where her and Troy sat.

Silence fell upon their bodies.

Troy's hand slithered over to hers, and he entwined his fingers with hers. She half looked over at him, and then looked back down at the desk.

"Are you okay?" He whispered.

For a moment, she hesitated to tell him.

She didn't want to tell him about how her father beat her two weeks ago, and her bruises were starting to rise to her skin.

"No." Tears fell off her cheeks as her voice crackled, and her voice was beginning to become quieter. "I'm not okay, Troy."

He was behind her, diagonally across. He could see a bruise on the back of her neck. "How long has it been since we last had sex?"

She looked over at their hands. "Two weeks."

He sighed.

Then, the ultimate question was asked.

Securely, he gripped her hand in his, reassuring her as he asked. He didn't want to make her uncomfortable. It was already a bad enough situation.

He looked at the back of her head. "Are you pregnant?"

She bit her lip, holding in a huge sob, and hiccupped once. Her body felt like it was going to shut down, but her mind kept racing.

With pain searing up her spin, she turned her head to look into his eyes. A sea of blue looked directly back at her, knowing the answer, but wanted her to confirm it.

Slowly, she nodded her head.

He rubbed his forehead and stared at the ground, loosening his grip on her hand. He let out a large sigh.

"What are we going to do?" Tears fell off her cheeks.

He rubbed his face a little more and then looked back up at her, gathering his wits together. "Honestly, I don't know... We'll figure this out, though, okay?"

She didn't know how to answer that one.

"I'm such a slut... " She shook her head at herself. "No wonder I'm covered in bruises... "

"You're not a slut, Gabriella." He denied her words and kissed her hand. "You just need someone to love, and someone to love you... "

She couldn't hold her tears back any longers. They began pouring down her face. Troy stood from his seat and walked to her side of the desk, grabbing her up in his arms. She allowed this, finding this to be a little soothing to her aching heart.

"Is she okay?" The teacher looked over at Gabriella.

Troy looked at the rest of the class, all who were staring at them. "Do you mind if I take her outside for a couple minutes to help her gather herself?"

"No, not at all." The teacher opened the door for them as Troy picked her up. She wrapped her arms and legs around him, nuzzling her head into his shoulder.

A freshman stood up. "Hey, Troy, I thought you were dating Ally!" He cracked a grin out of the corner of his mouth.

Troy half turned around, still facing the door. He looked over at the trouble-making freshman. "I was, until I came to this class."

"What do you mean?"

The entire class became silent.

"You aren't dating Gabriella Montez, are you?" One of the freshman girls raised an eyebrow at him.

Gabriella knew exactly what that sentence translated in to.

_"You aren't dating that nerdy, ugly, bitchy girl Gabriella, are you?"_

Ally's best friend stood up. "He's lying! There's no way that he's dating Gabriella! He loves Ally! Don't you, Troy? Put Gabriella down! You're confusing everyone! You love Ally!"

With pressure surfacing, he turned to the entire class. "I don't know if I can date Ally anymore. I've got another problem at hand."

As he was about to walk out of the class, he turned back around again and faced Ally's best friend. "You can tell Ally that we're over."

He sat her down at a lunch table, sitting beside her as she cried into his arms, feeling her strength as a person fly out the door.

_She never acknowledged her strength as a person. She regretted not doing that, because all of it just flew out the door._

_And took the other tiny pieces of her broken heart with it._

Troy rubbed her back a little and rested his head on her shoulder. She winced and pulled back.

"Oh, I'm sorry... " He sighed and withdrew his head away from her body. "Your dad should have never did that, no matter how bad the situation was... "

She couldn't help but cry, because all the pain in her life was at its climax. She was beaten by her father, started having sex with someone she met not even two months ago, got pregnant, and now is so heartbroken that she doesn't know what to do with herself.

_She wanted her life to end so, so badly..._

_To just get it over with..._

As she started to calm down a little, Troy pulled away and cupped her cheeks in his hands. "You alright?" He caressed her cheek with the tip of his thumb, looking into her eyes.

She shook her head, more tears still pouring from her chocolate eyes.

"I'll get you through this, alright?"

She shivered a little, hesitation building. Without another word, she nodded her head.

He gave her a reassuring smile.

_How could he be smiling when a girl he barely knows is pregnant with his child?_

_Did he plan it?_

Gabriella grasped his hand in hers, and rested her head against his chest.

"This is so ridiculous... " Gabriella sighed.

"I should have known better. It's not your fault by any means." He shook his head. "I'm a senior. I've been exposed to this stuff for longer than you have. I should have known to use protection."

"Well, we can't go back now... " She wiped her eyes. "We just have to stick together, hopefully... "

He ran his fingers through his hair. "I don't know how this is going to work out, but I'll make it work. You don't have to worry yourself."

...

As dusk fell beyond the colorful blaze of yellow, green, brown and red leaves and trees, Gabriella listened as her parents fought outside her bedroom about how many bumps (heroine) to buy the next time they went to go get some.

They didn't know about her being pregnant.

_They weren't going to find out._

She already had both of her cats in a carrier, ready to looked over at her two beautiful dogs. She bent down and kissed each one of them as they slept peacefully on the floor.

She couldn't do it.

She grabbed two leashes hanging on her door, clipped them on, and both of them jumped to their feet.

She grabbed her suitcase, opened her window and pulled her screen out. She set the dogs outside first, put her suitcase outside, and taped the note to her window. Without another word, she slipped into the night with her dogs and her suitcase, walking along the empty road which was lit by only one flickering streetlight.

A sudden freedom overcame her body. Although she was still just a baby bird, her wings were strong enough, and she had flown away from the jail cell that was her home. The home that she had lived in for 11 years. She would fly away from all the troubles in her life, the troubles that caused her the most heartbreak. Troubles that only held her down from the dreams that she wanted to achieve in life. The only things that ever held her down were her parents and drugs, the fights and the constant rumble of different cars pulling up to her mother and father's house to get drugs, and the lecturing or compromising of her mother and father trying to make a deal on pills, food stamps, or heroine. Now, she was able to go live a life that she never thought she could live. The life that she was meant to live, and the best part of it was that she would never, ever have to deal with the problems that she cried over many times while trying to sleep. She wouldn't lose any sleep over drugs, over her parents, or the problems at home. She was free to do whatever she wanted, when she wanted, and how she wanted. She had the strength to break away from the pain that had been festering inside of her for years.

As she walked down the empty road, her voice, crackling and dry, began to sing one of her favorite songs...

"So don't hold me down 'cause I'm gonna fly and the time has come and I gotta say goodbye to the life that you see me in. Here's where I begin... And I promise myself I ain't nobody's, I just wanna be free. And I promise myself even though it don't always come easy, gonna learn from my pain, never explain, do it my way, that's what I say. Promise myself I'm the only one who will complete me... "

_She was free..._


	8. The Savior

(A/N: So, so sorry for the delay. I've been very busy with school lately, so please excuse my absence.)

As Troy woke from his slumber, he could hear his phone beeping in the window. He got up, stretched, and yawned as he walked towards it.

He unplugged it from his charger.

Opening it, he saw Gabriella's name flash across the screen.

"Hello?" He held the phone tiredly to his ear.

"Troy?"

"Hey. Why are you calling so late?"

"I don't know... " She looked around. "How late is it?"

"About two thirty." He looked outside the window.

"Oh. I wouldn't know. I don't have a clock... "

"Yeah you do. On your headboard."

"I'm not in my room."

"Where are you?"

"Outside."

His eyes got wide. "Outside? At four in the morning? Gabriella, you're pregnant and- "

"I ran away, okay?" She sobbed. "I don't know where to go or what to do... I have my dogs and cats with me and my suitcase. Do you think you could take me to my friend Marie's?"

He was already putting his shoes on. "You're coming here. It's ten degrees outside, and I'm not driving all the way out to Danville to take you to your friend's house."

"But my pets- "

"They can come here." He grabbed his truck keys and started down the stairs. "And its a school night!"

"I'm sorry, okay?" She looked around and sat on the sidewalk. "I'm tired of my mom and dad with the drugs and everything. I'm tired of babysitting them!"

"That's not a reason to run away- "

"Just come get me, okay?" She sighed.

...

Gabriella could hear Troy's truck approaching her. She straightened her jacket and stood up, looking as Troy pulled up to her.

He got out, walked towards her, and grabbed her suitcase, throwing it in the back. He put the cats in the backseat of the truck, along with the dogs.

He grabbed her hand, opened the door, and helped her up to the seat.

Without another word, he pulled on to the road.

He sighed.

"What happened?"

She played with her fingers a little.

"Hello?"

"I blew a fuse... " She shook her head. "I couldn't take it anymore... "

He looked over at her. "What couldn't you take?"

"The drugs, them being high all the time, me having to take care of them... " She wiped a tear falling off her eye. "It's too hard for me to understand how they can choose drugs over me... "

He sighed. "I know what you mean... " He scratched Hannah's head as she poked her head around the seat to sniff his face. "Is that why you brought your dogs and cats?"

"I know they won't take care of them. They aren't worried about them."

Troy entwined his fingers with hers and kissed her hand. "Well, you don't have to worry about anything. I'll take care of them for you. And I'll take care of you."

There was a distant emotion hanging between them. It was like Troy thought of her only as his little slut that he gave love in return for sex.

And now that there was a baby involved, he snubbed her a little.

...

As morning came, Gabriella woke to the sound of an alarm clock buzzing in her ear.

She sat up quickly, whined, and rubbed her eyes.

Troy opened the bedroom door, rushed over, and turned it off. "Baby, you don't have to wake up. Just go back to bed."

"But there's school- "

"I'm letting you take a day off. Go back to sleep, okay?" He kissed her forehead.

Gabriella slowly layed back down on the bed. "Hannah, Marley... "

"I'll get them." Troy opened his bedroom door, yelling downstairs. "HANNAH! MARLEY!"

She could hear the distant thumping of both of her dogs running up the stairs.

"Hi girls!" He said, coaxing them into the room. "Get up on the bed, guys!"

Hannah automatically jumped up, circling around the bottom of the bed to find a comfy spot. Then, Marley jumped up and trampled Gabriella, plopping down with her rear on Gabriella's leg, and her head on Gabriella's stomach.

"Better?"

She nodded.

"Alright, I'll see you when I get home from school." He whispered, then gently kissed her cheek. "I love you."

_Such a jump, from being friends to lovers._

"I love you too." She mumbled.

"My mom and dad know about you staying here with the dogs and cats, so if you need anything, they'll be right up here. I have a pager right beside you, so page them if you need something."

"Do they know I'm pregnant?" She glanced at him, and read the expression on his face.

"Yeah." He ran his finger along her arm. "They know."

"Are they mad at me?"

"No, but they're raging mad at me, because they just figured out that I haven't been a virgin since I was fourteen." He chuckled a little. "They'll get over it."

She rolled over with a sigh. "I'll see you later."

"Okay, bye." He whispered, shutting the door behind him.

She rolled a little, stroking Marley's head a little.

"Are you alright here, Marley? Are you loving the big house?"

Marley opened her eyes a little, staring at Gabriella with her amber eye and her blue and brown halved eye.

Her beautiful Aussie, the best thing that had ever happened to her.

And her Golden Retriever Hannah, her protector.

She didn't know what she would do without them.

And thus, she fell back asleep...


	9. Reality Check

The next time she woke, she sat up almost immediately.

Her body shivered.

She wasn't in her bed.

Automatically, she bursted into tears.

"Gabriella, are you okay?" Troy grabbed one of her hands, looking into her eyes.

She stared back, her lips slightly parted, her bottom lip quivering, and her body shaking.

"Mommy... Daddy... " She sobbed.

"Awh, Gabriella- "

"They're gonna hate me... " She shook her head and buried her face in Marley's fur. "They don't want me there... "

"They love you more than anything, Gabriella... They're probably hurt that you left, but they also have to understand that you're hurt by their actions."

"They don't deserve it!"

"Honestly, they do. They're drug addicts. They have to realize that they're not only hurting themselves, but they're hurting you!"

She shook their head. "No! I did something horrible behind their backs, and they need to know- "

He grabbed her shoulders and shook her a little. "You listen to me right now, Gabriella Montez. They aren't going to know a word about this. They don't deserve to know."

And suddenly, she felt as if he was in control, and she couldn't do a thing about it.

"Now I can reassure you that nobody here will tell anyone. That's your choice, but you have to be careful who you tell." He looked out his window. "This neighborhood isn't safe by any means. This _town _isn't safe by any means. There are people out to get you, even if you haven't did a thing. You need to watch your step, and be informed before you make the same mistakes other people have made. Got it?"

Obediently, she nodded her head.

"Good. If you aren't careful, you're going to get yourself and our baby killed."

_Our baby..._

The words jumbled in her head, making her a little light-headed.

She always wanted a baby, always wanted to be a young mom.

A teen mom.

But, now that she was pregnant, she started to think about how her mom always stressed not getting pregnant and about using protection and "abstinence".

_Fuck abstinence._

_ Fuck protection._

_ Fuck getting pregnant._

All she was out for was love. That's all she wanted.

She wanted to feel love by someone that she loved. She wanted a purpose in life.

She suddenly wanted her baby, wanted to be a mother...

But, would Troy be there for her?

_That_ was the ultimate question.

"Did you break up with Ally?" Gabriella glanced at him, then back at Marley.

He sighed and shook his head. "I haven't said anything to her face-to-face. I told her friend, but not her... "

Gabriella sniffled and stroked Marley's fur. "You don't have to break up with her because of me. I'm not going to get between you. I just need somewhere to stay."

He bit his lip. "I don't know if I can really break her heart. She's so important to me. I really love her."

Sadness because to sweep through Gabriella's veins. "You don't have to. Please don't think that because I'm here, you have to break up with her. I want you to be happy."

Troy cracked a little smile from his face. "Well, thanks for caring... " He chuckled a little. "No girl that I've ever met really cares about me being happy. Even Ally... "

"Ally doesn't care about your happiness?"

"No, it's not that." He stood up and crossed his arms, walking towards his closet. "She's just always been distant. Always. She makes a lot of excuses. I can't really tell when she's telling the truth."

"Oh... " Gabriella played with Marley's ear. "I want everyone to find their eternal happiness. Always have, and always will. Whether that includes being married, or owning their own private veterinary practice, or even just spending time at home with their parents. Everyone should be happy. If you're not happy with Ally, then why are you with her?"

He turned towards his window, and shook his head slowly. "I don't know." She watched as his fingers trailed through his hair. "But I'll protect you. I don't care if Ally is my girlfriend or not. I'll protect you."

The afternoon sun beamed through his curtains and hit the front of his body directly. The front side of his profile was lit up very brightly, while the back was dark. She noticed how she felt nervous and awkward around him, because he was a senior and she was a freshman. He was a football player, an athlete, and she was a brainiac, a nerd... It just never seemed meant to be. She never thought anything of him before, and he never thought anything of her.

And now, barely two months after meeting him, she was pregnant with his baby, and they were both stuck in between two different lives, trying to decide what's right and what's wrong...

"Hey Troy?"

He continued to stare out the window. "Yeah?"

She felt a tear dribble down her face. "Do you want to keep this baby?"

For a few more seconds, his eyes stared outside, and then he looked at her. Both of their eyes met.

She could tell he was in deep thought.

"Honestly... " He frowned. "I haven't had a chance to think about that... "

She looked at her bruised arm, then let out a large sigh. "I want to keep it."

Once again, his eyes trailed off towards the window.

"I'm a senior. I play football. I'm one of the top athletes in the entire state. I have a full sports scholarship to play LSU football. In ten months, I'll be playing college football. I have a sexy freshman girlfriend and a reputation to protect... " He sighed and looked at the floor. "And now, I'll be a father to an innocent freshman's baby in eight and a half months. Does it look like I really need a baby holding me down?"

She shook her head. "Then you don't have to be a part of it. That's totally your choice. I've had it rough my entire life. My parents do drugs, I've been bullied by many people, and I've never been loved... I want this baby. This baby will be mine, and I'll have someone who actually loves me... "

"Your parents love you, whether you think so or not. It's just that drugs have gotten between you guys... "

She wish she could confirm his words.

But, in reality, she couldn't.

There was no way to tell whether or not anyone in the world had ever loved her.

And, it broke her heart to know that.

So silently, tears fell down her cheeks.

Tears that would soon become useless in her fight to be noticed.

To be recognized.

To be loved...


	10. Winter

Soon, the autumn leaves didn't sweep through the rough terrain of Ohio.

They weren't there anymore.

They had fragmented and decomposed, becoming part of the soft ground.

Now, snow took over their place...

The particles glided over the grey sky, barely touching eachother, and would combine and form larger snowflakes. They all fell on something, whether it was the ground, the street, a rooftop, atop a human head...

It was the 20th of December, and Gabriella was _still_ at Troy's house.

It was like her parents hadn't put an effort forward to find her.

But at the moment, Troy wasn't home.

He wasn't planning on coming home.

It was nine at night, and Ally's parents were out of town for a couple days, and left Ally and her older brother to the house alone.

But, her brother was out partying.

She was all alone.

Troy pulled up to the house and slammed his door shut, locking the car behind him. He broke out in a sweat in the freezing cold, knowing that he was promising himself to Gabriella, but he already belonged to Ally.

He shoved his hands in his pockets as he rang the doorbell. The sweat on his forehead began to form in beads and trickled off his forehead as he became even more nervous.

The door opened.

"BABY!" Ally had a large smile on her face as she ran to him and jumped into his arms.

"Hey!" He wrapped his arms around her body and sighed, burying his head into her shoulder, inhaling her sweet scent.

"I missed you!" She kissed his cheek and pulled away from him, sliding out of his grip. She cocked her head to the side. "You look a little warm- "

"I'm fine." He cut her off as he stepped inside. She shut the door behind him.

"Are you- "

"Fine, Ally." He took his jacket off and hung it on the hook. "Perfect."

"Okay... " She said innocently and turned around. "So, what are you planning on doing as a sport this win- "

"No sports. Just rest." He blurted.

"Are you sure you're okay?"

"I'm fine!" He shook his head and flattened his hair. "I'm fine... "

"Forget about what Jess said. I don't believe her. She's a liar anyways. Who cares about what she says about Spanish- "

"Alright, I get it."

She grabbed his hand and lead him up the stairs. "Bryan's not home. He's at a party. He'll be out all night." Ally smirked at him.

He opened the door for her as they approached the room.

"Do you want me to turn the heat down?"

"No, it's fine." He said, backing her against the wall. "But you might have to crack a window soon."

She chuckled as a large smile came across her face. She looked down at their feet as Troy cornered her in with his arm.

"You naughty boy." She glanced up, only catching his eyes for a couple seconds before looking back down.

A grin came across Troy's face. "What does Troy do for Ally?"

"Make Ally happy with his dick." She whispered in his ear.

"And what does Ally do for Troy?"

"Gives Troy a pussy to fuck... " She grabbed the side of his face.

"Good girl." He mumbled.

"You gonna stay all night?"

"I was planning on it." He grabbed her shoulders and pushed her toward the bed.

"Good." She said as she obediently climbed onto the bed.

Without another word, he grasped the end of her shirt and lifted it over her head.

Sexily, he kissed between her breasts as she gripped his hair in her fingers. A slight grip fled from his mouth as he looked up at her.

She pulled his shirt over his head, quickly running her fingers over his abs.

A flash hit Troy, and suddenly, it didn't seem so sexy anymore.

He remembered Gabriella, and how she had been the poor little girl that he saved from a great deal of hell...

And he had promised that he would protect her...

Troy's eyes got wide as Ally kissed along his abs, begging him to take her shorts off.

He remembered that she was pregnant and it was his responsibility to make sure that she was comfortable and taken care of...

He had a responsibility, and he couldn't abandon it...

Ally started to unbuckle his belt.

Troy remembered how he gave Gabriella love, how she gripped his love within her body and took it in strides. She wasn't just a pregnant bitch that had to stay with him because he got her pregnant.

She was the person whom he had promised his love to...

He could feel Ally fumbling with the zipper on his pants.

He jerked himself off Ally, his eyes wide as he sat at the end of the bed with his feet dangling over the edge. He was panting, and suddenly, he held his head as a bead of sweat fell off his forehead.

Or was it a tear.

"Baby... " Ally grabbed his shoulders and jerked him.

Obeying, he slowly climbed over her and started kissing her again.

He remembered how he felt butterflies for Gabriella and how he had never felt a kiss like Gabriella's before.

He remembered how sweet her lips were.

He remembered how beautiful, but sexy she was, although she was a nerdy freshman.

She stood out.

And he had feelings for her.

His eyes got wide again, and he stopped kissing Ally.

"No, this isn't right... " He shook his head and once again, climbed off her.

"What's not right?"

"I cheated on you. I had sex with another girl." He looked over at her. "I'm sorry."

"You... You what?" She backed up, tears falling off her face.

This was what he feared.

"I'm sorry, Ally. I never meant to hurt you."

She backed against the front of the bed, shaking her head.

"Please, don't be mad... "

"SCREW YOU!" She put her shirt on and opened her door.

"Ally- "

"LEAVE!"

"Let me explain!"

"YOU GOT A WHOLE LOT OF EXPLAINING!"

He stood up. "She needed something in her life. She needed someone to love. I gave her love."

"Who was it? Who was this girl?" She demanded.

"That's not important- "

"WHO WAS IT?"

Beads of sweat started running off Troy's head.

He started to realize that he wasn't mean to be with Ally...

"Gabriella. Gabriella Montez."

Ally's mouth dropped. "You mean you slept with a nerdy little brain? She's a fucking ugly ass bitch! Can't you see how ugly she is? She's a brainiac! What senior, hot football player has sex with a nerd?"

His blood began to boil. He stepped up to Ally, and began to defend what he thought was right.

"She might be smart, but she's beautiful, and she has the biggest heart of anyone I've EVER known. She's not a nerd. It doesn't matter if she makes good grades or not. She has fucking drug addicts as parents who she has to babysit every day, and so snobby biches like you don't need to be judging her! SO BACK OFF, YOU LITTLE SLUT!"

Hurt, tears started running down Ally's cheeks. "How could you do this to me? Throw this sexy girl away for a little nerd?"

"Well, I did it." He grabbed his shirt.

"What did you do, make her feel like a princess? Did you use top of the line condoms?"

"None of your god damn business." He walked past her and started towards the stairs.

"If you don't tell me, I'll call my brother home- "

"I'm not scared of your smart-ass brother. He's a pussy."

"Just tell me- "

"I DIDN'T USE ANY FUCKING CONDOMS, OKAY?" He screamed in her face as he turned around.

A moment of silence came between them as she suddenly figured out what was going on.

"You didn't use any condoms... "

"No." He said quietly.

"And she isn't on birth control?"

He shook his head.

"And you didn't pull out?"

"I didn't even think about it, to be honest."

"So you cummed inside her?"

"Yeah." He started down the stairs. "Look, I don't want to talk about this."

"How long ago- "

"She's pregnant, okay? Is that what you're beating around the bush about? Go tell every god damn soul in the school. I could give a fuck." He pulled his shirt over his head.

Suddenly, she got her phone out.

"Who are you calling?"

"Avery."

"Avery Leech?"

"My boyfriend."

Troy grabbed his jacket.

"How long have you been cheating on me with him for?"

"Since I started dating you." She held the phone to her ear.

"Well, go fuck him and see how much I care." He zipped his coat up. "I'm done with your ass. Go out and get pregnant. I hope you bleed to death giving birth to Avery's demon kids." He slammed the door in her face.


	11. True Love

One in the morning rolled around.

Insomnia set in Gabriella's body, and she tossed and turned all night in Troy's bed. Marley layed beside her, letting Gabriella lay all over her and be her teddy bear, and Hannah was a silent sentinel at the door, and wasn't about to let anyone in that room without a bloody fight. Grey, Gabriella's year old male Bengal/Maine Coon mixed cat (the older of the two cats), layed silently on the soft, plush floor and snored a couple times. Inkheart, Gabriella's eight month old Maine Coon (the younger of the two cats) rested silently at the end of the bed, pawing at an imaginary bird as he dreamt of chasing a robin.

It was so quiet...

Gabriella grasped Marley's fur between her fingers and sighed as she felt her stomach growling a little.

She didn't want to starve her baby, but she feared that going downstairs would be disrespectful...

So, she stayed upstairs.

Suddenly, the door jarred open a little.

Hannah grunted and moved over, retreating her position as guard.

A sliver of light flooded into the room, and fell upon Gabriella's eyes. She squinted as she opened them a little, trying to figure out who was at the door.

She saw Troy's dark figure open and close the door, followed with a little sniffle.

A little light shone through the window. She watched as the silhouette removed his shirt and his pants, then pulled on a pair of sweats. He booted Inkheart and Marley off the bed, opened the blankets up a little, and pushed his way inside them beside Gabriella's warm body. He sniffled again, then wrapped an arm around Gabriella's ribs and pulled her close to him, stroking her hair.

"Troy?" She whispered.

He jumped a little, as if he thought she was actually asleep. He was still silent.

"Troy... What's wrong?" She touched his face, then felt his soft cheeks.

They were damp.

"Were you crying?"

"No... " He sniffled again. He denied the fact that he was a crying football player.

"What's going on? You never come in here while I'm sleeping, let alone sleep in the same bed with me."

"Did I wake you?"

"No. Not at all. I couldn't sleep." She ran her fingers through his hair. "Tell me what's going on."

He sighed and pulled her body close to him, allowing her to snuggle against him. He kissed the top of her head. "I broke up with Ally."

Gabriella sighed. "Oh, Troy... "

"She cheated on me, Gabriella... " He let out a deep breath and kissed the top of her head. "Ever since we started dating. I loved her, I really did... "

"I'm sorry I've had to put you through all this."

"You haven't put me through anything. It was my choice. I broke up with her. I have feelings for you, Gabriella, stronger than the feelings I had for Ally. You need me, and I promised I would protect you. I can't protect Ally and you. I chose the top of my priorities. That's you and the baby."

Gabriella ran her hand along his side.

She had never felt his side.

It was rippled with his strong ribs, which protected the one thing that kept him falling for Gabriella.

His heart.

She felt his hand across her back as he pulled her in a little closer, kissing her forehead as she looked up at him.

Love never felt so great to Gabriella...

He sobbed once, and buried his face into her hair. She shushed him as her hand fled to his shoulder. She squeezed it once and kissed it.

"You can cry... " She inhaled his cologne, knowing that that smell meant she was safe.

"Senior football players don't cry. Fathers don't cry. I'm both now. I have to be strong. I can't let you two down- "

"Everyone cries, Troy." Gabriella said.

"No they don't." He sobbed again.

"Just cry... " She whispered again.

Without holding back, tears poured from Troy's eyes as he buried himself into her body. She comforted him the entire time, rubbing his back and looking for the strength that she once had.

That strength was starting to come back.

As he cried, she began to wonder why they ended up together.

A nerdy, ugly freshman, and a sexy, senior football player.

It seemed like it wasn't meant to be.

But, in reality, they were crazy for eachother, and weren't about to let anything get in the way of their love.

What would the future hold?

He pulled back once, looking at her, his bottom lip quivering. He looked at her as if he was a helpless little boy, crying into his mother's arms. She allowed him to be the little boy he never could be, and was there for him the entire time.

She really did love him.

She had never loved any person before as much as she loved Troy.

And to think that this happened over a two month period was beyong Gabriella.

She never thought she could fall into deep love for someone within two months. (Well, look at Romeo and Juliet... Fell for eachother in two days, and died in a week.)

She ran her fingers through his soft, straight, brown hair and squeezed it a little as he buried his head into her shoulder to cry a little more. She repeated this process, finding that it helped comfort him a little.

Finally, he pulled back and sobbed, saying a couple words.

"How are you so good at comforting me, when you've never had anyone comfort you?"

She shrugged. "I guess I have so much mistreatment bubbled up inside of me that I don't want to hurt anyone else. I just want someone to love. I always have, and I always will... "

He wiped his eyes and decided it was time for Gabriella to be comforted.

He sat up completely and put his head between his hands, trying to gather himself. Then, he looked back at Gabriella, and held his arm out for her to fill it. She sat up and crawled towards him, filling his waiting arm.

She leaned against the side of his chest as he squeezed her tightly and securely, finding his way back to his strong side. He kissed the top of her head and ran his hand up and down her arm slowly, as if to comfort her.

Gabriella looked up at him with her chocolate eyes, and he melted into her chocolate absorbtion.

She was the most beautiful thing that had ever walked into his life.

It didn't matter to him that she was a nerd.

It didn't matter that she was a freshman.

It didn't matter that she was hated by everyone.

It didn't matter to him that she had low self esteem.

It didn't matter if she thought that she was ugly.

He loved her the way she was.

She snuggled into him a little more, wondering how she ever could have possibly ended up like this. She had a hot senior boyfriend whom she lived with, and she was _finally _being loved by someone.

And then, Troy did something she thought he would never do.

With his other hand, he gently pulled Gabriella's shirt up a little, and ran his finger across her stomach. Then, he rested his hand upon it. Gabriella was a little shocked by this, but went along with it and placed her hand on his.

"I know it's only been two months, but Gabriella, I think I'm falling for you." He said, just above a whisper.

"Falling for me?" She questioned, not really sure what he meant by that. "What do you mean?"

"I've never, ever had feelings for someone but you. I've never felt so great when I've kissed you. I've never felt so much love when I'm around you... I'm really, truely in love with you."

A moment of silence drifted into Gabriella's body.

"I think I'm in love with you too." She said, looking up at him.

Without any words, he tucked a strand of hair behind her ear, then leaned down towards her and gently kissed her lips. Not wanting to pull back, he kissed a couple more times, feeling love caressing his body as drugs would run through your veins.

She pulled back and leaned back a little as he lowered himself down more. He moved both of their hands off her stomach, and planted a soft kiss on her stomach. He sat up, pulled Gabriella on to his lap, and wrapped his arms around her, resting both of her hands on her stomach. She rested her hands on his as he rocked her back and forth.

"You deserve so much better than what life had put on your plate. I'm going to try to give you a better life than what you've had already. I'll be here for you... " He kissed her head once more before resting his chin upon it. "And we're going to raise this baby, and give it a life that is better than anyone's ever had.

And true love's kiss fell upon their lips.


	12. Consequences Of The Jealous Girlfriend

Gabriella dragged herself out of bed the next day.

She took a shower, brushed her teeth, and automatically went to sit in Troy's truck.

She sat there for a half hour, waiting for him to take her to school.

An hour later, he finally came out.

He got in, and turned the truck on.

"A little antsy to go to school?"

"I just want to get today over with... " She rested her head against the seat. "I feel like shit... "

"You look beautiful."

"I'm a fat-ass now." She looked out the window.

"Hey!" He grabbed her hand and kissed it, causing her to look over at him. "You're not fat."

She lifted up her shirt a little. "Look at me. I'm two months pregnant and I'm already getting fatter."

"Well, you're not fat until you have stretch marks on your arms." He chuckled and let go of her hand, pulling out of the driveway.

She flattened her shirt over her stomach and sighed, letting go of his hand.

As they arrived at school, Troy parked in the school parking lot and they both got out of his truck. He handed her the backpack as they both started towards the school.

From the end of the parking lot, a voice called Troy's name out.

"Wait, Gabriella." He said, grabbing her arm.

He turned a little, watching as the running back from his football team ran towards him. This guy, Wilson Hedrickson, was a tall, lanky kid, with a set of green eyes and blonde hair. He was fairly attractive, and many girls swarmed him as they saw him, like Troy.

"Bolton!" He yelled out.

"Wilson?" Troy said as he approached him. "Is something wrong?"

"No, no!" Wilson stopped in front of Troy. He looked over at Gabriella, then raised an eyebrow. "Don't you have something to do?"

Gabriella was appauled. She looked at Troy with a disgusted look.

"No, she's with me... " Troy could see Gabriella grimacing from the corner of his eye. "Anyway, why were you calling me?"

"Trevor texted me last night... " He pulled his phone out and searched through his texts. "He said this... " Wilson pulled up one of his texts and showed Troy.

_hey, u will nvr believe what i jst herd! avery jst told me that some nerdy freshman chic named gabriella montez had sex with troy bolton & he got her pregnant. u think its true?_

Wilson shut his phone and shoved it back into his pocket. "Did you?"

Troy nervously looked over at Gabriella he shoved his hands in his pockets. "Uh... " He took one of his hands out of his pockets and brushed his hair forward, then flattened it out with his hand.

"Did you or did you not?"

"I... Um... No, I didn't... " He sighed a breath of relief. "You know that wouldn't happen."

"Then why would somebody say something like that? I don't think that anyone around this school would spread a rumor about you having sex with some nerdy freshman and getting her pregnant unless it was true." Wilson raised an eyebrow.

"It's not true... " Troy shook his head quickly and turned around. "I've gotta go. I have to get her to first period- "

"Where's Ally? I thought you used to drive her to school every day."

"We broke up last night." Troy turned a little, but not all the way. He looked at Wilson, then turned back around and started walking with Gabriella.

"Is she your new girlfriend?" Wilson said, grabbing Troy's arm.

"No, Wilson, she's not my girlfriend. She's a foreign exchange student from... Uh... Guatemala."

"Guatemala? She's mexican?"

"Stop asking questions!" Troy groaned and turned around. "Yes, she's mexican! She's not my girlfriend! She's a foreign exchange student that lives beside me! No, I didn't have sex with a freshman! I didn't get anyone pregnant! I broke up with Ally! Does THAT answer all your questions?"

Wilson's eyes got wide. "Damn Troy, I didn't mean to make you mad- "

"Well, I am, so get out of my face before yours looks like your ass!" Troy turned back around and grabbed Gabriella's arm, giving her a little shove forward. "Just ignore him."

"I'll see you at the banquet tonight- "

"SHOVE IT UP YOUR ASS!" Troy yelled behind him.

Gabriella looked up at Troy. "Are you okay?"

He sighed and rubbed his eyes. "I'm fine." He looked down at her. "Don't worry about it."

"Well, I am! Someone knows I'm pregnant with your baby and is spreading it around the school! I don't know who it could possibly be, because none of my friends know, and this was completely confidential between us."

Troy began to think about Ally and him last night...

"No, nobody knows... " He started walking a little faster.

As they approached the door, Troy opened it for Gabriella and allowed her to step inside before he did.

"Are you going to be okay?" Gabriella said to Troy as they approached her first period class. "You don't look too great... "

"Yeah." He nodded. "I'll be fine.

"Are you sure?" She ran her hand across his arm and moved her head sideways.

"I'm alright, I promise." He put his hand on the door handle. "I'll see you later."

She opened the door a little, but he grabbed the back of her arm. She turned around, a little confused.

"I love you." He smiled at her.

She wasn't sure whether or not she should say it back, because he had just broke up with Ally, and now he's saying that he is falling head over heels for her.

But, of course, she repeated.

"I love you." She said back.

He leaned forward and kissed her forehead.

She then slipped through the door to her first period.

...

The last bell rang.

Gabriella stood up with her things and slipped her backpack on,

Suddenly, she was swarmed by her classmates.

"Did you have sex with Troy Bolton? Are you pregnant? Are you and Troy Bolton dating?" Everyone in the crowd backed Gabriella against the wall.

Her eyes got wide. "No, no, and no!" She looked over at the teacher, who was pushing his way through the girls.

"ENOUGH!" The teacher stood in front of Gabriella. "Leave her alone! That is her business, and not every else's!"

"We just want to know!" One girl said. "Everyone's been saying that they're dating and that she's pregnant!"

"That's none of your business!" He shooed everyone away.

Once they finally backed off, Gabriella had just enough time to get away. She booked it out the door and down the hallway as if she it was a matter of life or death.

She didn't stop until Troy caught her.

"Woah!" He took the force of her stopping to quickly by taking a few steps back. He hugged her in his arms as she suddenly began crying. "What's going on?"

"Everyone knows, Troy! Everyone!" She sobbed and buried her head in his chest. "I haven't gone to one class today without being harassed about it!"

He sighed kissed the top of her head, rocking her back and forth in his arms. "I honestly don't know what to do. We'll just have to ride it out until you start getting bigger."

She started getting a little more upset. "Just take me home! I don't want to be here anymore!"

Troy grabbed her hand and lead her outside through a crowd of people.

Automatically, they started jumping on them with questions.

"Are you pregnant? Did you two have sex? Are you dating? Did you break up with Ally?"

Troy continued to push his way through the crowd, holding Gabriella's hand tight. He wasn't about to let go.

"Troy!" Gabriella said as her hand began to slip from his.

He looked behind him.

Suddenly, her hand fell from his and she sunk into the crowd. He pushed his way through people to get to Gabriella, and grabbed her from the crowd.

"Are you okay?"

She nodded quickly.

"Let's go!" He said, dragging her a little.

She got to her feet.

She became flaming mad.

Her blood boiled...

Troy pulled her onto his back and started towards his truck. "Don't say a word! Just be quiet! They don't need to know anything!" He whispered to her.

She glared at everyone there as they finally left the crowd of people.

It wouldn't be long until her tolerence level blew up.


	13. I'll Take Care Of You

(A/N: Wanna see the real Hannah, Marley, Grey, and Inkheart? Go to this link: .com/photos/nessaxrawrxellazacx3/. I have lots of pictures of them! Here's a guide to figuring out which animal is which. The names that I use on here for them are their middles names. If that doesn't help, use this. Hannah: Katy (Kaitlynn (Katy) Hannah), Marley: Taylor (Taylor Marley) Grey: Morgan (Morgan Grey Clyde) Inkheart: Leon (Leon Inkheart) For pictures of Morgan, go into my sets and find him, because I don't have many pictures posted of him. Check them out! I hope you fall in love with them as much as I have myself!)

The next day started Christmas break.

Marley stuck her nose into Gabriella's foot and then barked in her face.

"Shut up, Marley." Gabriella glared at her.

Marley wagged her stubby tail and narrowed her glassy eyes at Gabriella.

Another bark.

"Marley!" Gabriella looked down at her. "You gotta go potty?"

She barked again, going towards Troy's door.

"Wanna go for a walk?"

Both of the dogs jumped up and perked their ears up. Hannah grabbed her leash in her mouth and began to wag her tail.

"Awh, girls... " Gabriella snapped both of their leashes on.

As she walked downstairs, she was caught by Troy's mom, who grabbed her arm.

"Hey stranger! I never see you at all!" She crossed her arms. "Why are you up so early?"

Suddenly, Gabriella became shy.

"I don't want to bother anyone. Really, I don't."

"You're not bothering anyone, sweetheart." She gave her a reassuring smile. "You can come downstairs. Please don't feel like you're not welcome, because you are. I understand the situation you're in with your parents and now with Troy's baby. I just want you to know that I'm here for you. Okay?"

Gabriella nodded. "Thank you, Kay."

"No problem." Kay opened the door for Gabriella.

Gabriella sat outside in the freezing cold weather, with her hoodie and pajama pants on, and her little fuzzy slippers.

It was four in the morning.

Gabriella sighed to herself and watched as both Hannah and Marley romped around in the deep snow. Her hands were starting to shake, so she shoved them in her pockets.

She knew that it wasn't very safe for her outside.

She didn't want to freeze her baby.

She crossed her arms across her stomach and called both of the dogs.

Neither of them listened.

"Hannah, Marley!" Gabriella called.

Nothing.

She heard the screen open and close, and she turned around.

"What are you doing outside when its 10 degrees out and four in the morning?" Troy stepped down the steps and stood by her side.

"Dogs wanted out."

"You could've had me take them out."

"I didn't want to bother you." She looked over at him. "You need your sleep."

"And you need it more." He grabbed her waist and pulled her close to him. Through his hoodie, she could hear his heartbeat.

"Well, next time, I'll wake you up."

"Okay." He kissed the top of her head. "Now go inside. I'll stay outside with these guys."

She looked up at him. "Are you sure?"

"Yeah." He let go of her. "Go inside. I don't want you to get sick."

"I don't want you to get sick either- "

"Better me than you." He pointed towards the door. "Now get inside before I have to pick you up and take you inside myself."

As she went back inside, she sat on the couch, and rested her head against Troy's pillow.

And suddenly, a deep need to sleep came over her body.

...

Troy opened the door for Marley and Hannah, letting them shake off the snow on the porch, where he also dried both of them with a towel.

He looked over at the couch, seeing that Gabriella had fallen asleep on it in a matter of minutes.

He slowly walked towards it, took his sweatshirt off, and picked Gabriella up.

"Troy, what are you doing up- " His mom cut herself off.

"Taking care of my girl." He whispered. "She's sleeping."

"I thought Ally was still your girlfriend."

"We broke up two days ago... " He turned around with Gabriella. "My top priority right now is Gabriella and the baby, not Ally or school or college or whatever. It's this one."

Kay sighed and lead him upstairs to his room. "I'm still very upset with you about going around and taking advantage of all these girls." She opened the door for him.

"And I'm paying for it." He slipped inside his room. "I always, always used condoms... And now look at me. I slipped one time, just _one _time, and I get Gabriella pregnant." Troy layed her across his bed and covered her with the blanket. "And now, everyone at school knows, and I'll lose my reputation as the sexy football player who fucks any girl who passes him." He sat on the bed and put his face in his hands. "Mom, I don't need interference from you right now. I have my own problems that I need to fix."

"I have the _right_ to interfere with what you're doing! I'm your mother, and as long as you live in _my_ house, you are under _my_ rules! As of right now, I don't want you having any sex with any girl, no matter what! You have a baby now that depends on you, so you need to stop worrying about football and about girls and worry about your child."

"Don't you see I am?" He stood up. "I offered for Gabriella to stay in my bed, in my room, and in my life! No, not because she's really, really hot, or the fact that she's pregnant with my kid, but the fact that I'm starting to fall for her, deeply- " He stopped himself with a sigh. "Yeah mom, I'm falling in love with someone I barely know."

She crossed her arms. "You can't fall for someone at the age you're at. You're stuck between her being an easy target for sex, and the fact that she's pregnant with your child."

"That's not true. I didn't use her."

"You used her. Admit it. You didn't love her at the time."

"Maybe, but she wanted love."

"You didn't love her Troy! You used her!" Kay became aggravated. "You used her to get what every boy on this planet wants when they turn into teenagers!"

"Okay fine mom, I used her!" He stood up. "So what? I love her now, and we have something very special together, okay? I don't care if she's smart and nobody likes her, I don't care if she thinks she's ugly, and I don't care how low her life has been so far, because _I love her_."

Kay raised an eyebrow. "I'll believe it when I see it."

"I don't have to prove anything to you." He turned around. "I've got my life right here, whether you think so or not."

Disgusted, Kay shut the door.

Troy climbed over Gabriella to the other side of the bed and pulled the blankets over him, then pulled Gabriella's sleeping body towards him.

"Don't worry Brie. I love you." He kissed the tip of her nose and nuzzled into her hair.


	14. Prologue 2

(A/N: PLEASE READ THIS BEFORE YOU READ THIS CHAPTER! If it seems confusing, this is a newer prologue. It sort of links to the prologue I wrote at the beginning to the story to what he is thinking at this moment. If you haven't already noticed, the story (so far, chapters 2-13) is a flashback. Every new prologue I write is a newer part of their present status. Every other chapter I write is a part of the flashback. I will mention at the beginning of each story which part is a prologue. I will also explain a little more about what is going on in the story so that you aren't confused. First, I will summarize the story:  
>[<em>Gabriella and Troy had sex. Her dad caught her. She ended up pregnant. She ran away with her dogs and cats to Troy's house because she was so fed up with their drugs, and secretly (which I did not mention) she didn't want her mom and dad to know she was pregnant. Then, Troy broke up with Ally and both Troy and Gabriella started to admit their feelings to eachother. Then, at the end of the last chapter, Troy's mother was doubting him, because he had made so many mistakes with other girls.<em>]  
>Okay, so now you have the summary of the story. Now, I will explain what is going on in the prologues.<br>[_In the first prologue, Troy and Gabriella seem really stuck up and cocky towards eachother. You find out that she cuts herself at the sink and Troy is so bothered by it that he has to leave. He sais he was going to see Ally, which he really can't because he's in Lousiana (LSU). Gabriella is in a hospital in Lousiana for a reason that you'll find out later. Now, when Troy said he was going to go see Ally, he left. This chapter is about where he went._]  
>Okay, so now I give you permission to read the rest of the new prologue. :) Remember, if you have any questions about the story, don't hesitate to ask me. I will try to clear it up the best I can for you to understand.)<p>

Troy sat quietly.

He rocked back and forth, back and forth.

The squeaks of the rocking chair sounded somewhat soothing.

He had so, so many things to work out...

How he would be able to tell his mom, dad, and everyone else what had happened to the most important thing in his life.

He looked over at the large, red, velvet heart with flowers and chocolates that his mom sent him from back in Ohio. On the front of it, there was fancy pink bold lettering that read "Congratulations! It's a girl!"

It was just a matter of time before he _had_ to tell them.

"No, mom. It's not a fucking girl." He rocked back and forth. "Of course, who the fuck cares. It's a damn baby." He sighed.

The squeak made more noise as he rocked faster.

The room was filled with beautiful, hand-painted murals of many little animals and a large, elegant oak tree that climbed the walls and sprouted on the ceiling. Each and every leaf had a name on it and a birthday.

Every year, those names were erased, and new names were put on it.

The girls had pink leaves, and the boys had blue leaves.

Even dead babies had their names on it. If unnamed, they would say "Baby (Last name)" and their birthday beside it.

He got chills up his spine as he saw a freshly painted leaf, directly above him. It was blue, and had tiny white lettering that named another baby.

It killed him to look at the name, let alone the caption below the name.

_Zane Bolton: July 8th, 2008 - 4:08 AM  
>Lost, but not forgotten.<em>

Troy choked up in tears as he read it, and quickly looked away. A couple tears ran down his cheeks and he sobbed to himself.

The only thing that had kept him going for all those months was gone.

As they say, gone with the wind.

Forever.

He tightened his hands into fists and longed to punch that doctor that killed his son.

The doctor that gave his son a shot, which in the end, ended up poisoning the baby.

Troy wanted to kill that doctor...

He wanted so badly for peace to come over his body...

...

Gabriella's lonely body lay on the floor.

She had a razor in her hand.

Her hand lay on the ground beside her. The razor was coated in thick, fresh, warm blood.

And a pool of thick, fresh, warm blood surrounded her body as her last breath struggled above her slit throat.

She sobbed one last sob, and slowly closed her eyes.

Nobody loved her.

She was a nuissance to everyone around her.

Just a little rat who had a sob story about getting pregnant.

And about being abandoned by her true love.

One last breath surfaced upon her lips, and then her body shut down forever.


	15. Spring

(A/N: Pay attention to the part where they talk about the baby's name. It will play a significant role later on in the story.)

Spring.

The winter snow melted into a warm, buttery water that fertilized the season's new, sprouting flowers, which jumped up and surprised every soul that passed their new buds.

Gabriella knew that being five months pregnant wasn't a walk in the park. Nobody still knew at school because she was barely showing at all.

Not as much as she should be.

She griped at the fact that it was March, and her due date was in July.

Well, that was four months away.

She was over halfway there.

Troy and Gabriella both walked down the hallway of the school, and since nobody was looking, they were hand in hand, talking about nothing other than some random prank that had been played on the school.

She groaned as they approached her first period class.

"You okay?" He turned towards her as they got to the door.

"I'm alright... " She sighed. "I'll see you in Spanish."

He stroked her cheek and looked into her eyes. "You know I love you, right?"

She nodded.

He kissed her forehead. "Have fun in English."

"Yeah, sure." She rolled her eyes.

He leaned down a little and placed a loving kiss upon her lips.

A sudden noise startled both Troy and Gabriella. Since they didn't want to be caught, they both acted like normal people towards eachother around other people. So, this scared them both, because they didn't want any secrets about them leaking out and spreading around the school like wildfire. That was their worst fear.

He looked around cautiously. "Probably just a creak in the school. You know the school's old... "

She laughed at herself. "I'll see you later."

"Bye Zane or Leah." He kissed Gabriella's stomach and looked up at Gabriella with a sneaky face.

"No! It's Talen for a boy, and Ainsley for a girl! Stop calling it Zane and Leah! I hate those names! I told you at the beginning I hated Zane and Leah, and now just to get back at me, you're calling it Zane and Leah!"

He frowned playfully. "We'll see about that." He laughed a little. "Bye Brie."

She opened the door and watched as Troy walked down the hallway to his class.

...

Lunch was a different story.

Gabriella had first lunch, and Troy had second lunch.

She sat at the table with her friend, Kennady, and another kid named Graph and Ava. Kennady was an ex-emo girl who really didn't care what anyone said about her, nor what she said about anyone. Ava was quiet. Graph was another story.

Gabriella hated Graph. She could kill him. He was a kid who wanted desperately to be gothic, but didn't fit into that category. He was into blood and guts, and Gabriella wasn't.

And he was just annoying all around.

Kennady looked over at Gabriella. "Why are you so mopy today?"

Gabriella cocked her head. "I'm not mopy, am I?"

"You seem kind of moody today. Like you've been stabbed in the back or something."

Gabriella shrugged. "I don't know... "

Suddenly, Graph looked over at Gabriella from texting on his phone. "Hey, do you know what ES is?"

"I don't know and I don't care. I wouldn't tell your lazy ass even if I knew."

"What did I do?"

"Go screw yourself in the ass, Graph."

"Fuck you!"

"Right back at you."

"Go suck a dick!" Graph laughed.

"I have, thank you." She raised an eyebrow. "And I bet you have too, you gaybag."

He was appauled.

Kennady bursted out laughing. "You given a blow job before?"

Gabriella nodded.

"Have you had sex before?" The quiet Ava spoke up.

Gabriella nodded.

"Jesus Gabriella, I never thought you were that kind of person!" Kennady was hysterical.

"What does it matter... " Gabriella sighed. "What do I have to lose?"

She could hear Graph's phone beeping.

And suddenly, the entire cafeteria became quiet as they also received messages.

"Oh my god... " Graph's eyes got wide.

"What?" Gabriella looked over at him.

He showed his phone to Kennady and Ava. Both of their mouths dropped.

"What? What's going on?" Gabriella tried to look at Graph's phone, but he gripped it.

Kennady couldn't catch her breath. "Are you dating a senior?"

"What? No! Why would you think that?" Gabriella lied.

Graph showed her his phone.

There was a picture of Troy and Gabriella that morning walking down the hallway holding hands. Another picture was of Troy and Gabriella locking lips that morning. And another showed Gabriella in Troy's truck as they went to school.

She stood up and held her hand to her mouth. "Oh... My... Fucking... " She couldn't get the last word out.

Everyone was staring at her.

They knew the answer, but they just wanted to hear it from her.

Just like when Gabriella told Troy she was pregnant.

As the second lunch started to come in, she began to spill her guts.

"Oh my god, are you people stalkers? I've been dating Troy since December! Happy?"

"You missed a picture... " Graph showed her another picture.

Troy kissing her stomach.

"Oh god... " She shook her head.

"Why is he- "

"I'M FUCKING PREGNANT, OKAY?" She screamed.

Everything suddenly became silent.

Even the talkative second lunch became dead silent.

And suddenly, she heard him...

"What are you talking about?" Troy tried to cover his own ass. "I'm not dating you! You're- "

"The secret is out, Troy... " She looked out at everyone. "Someone caught us this morning."

He looked at everyone.

"I don't know what this girl is talking about. I'm a football player, and I don't go around dating little nerdy freshman girls who just want a boyfriend. I'm single, and not even going for any girls right now- "

"TROY!" Gabriella sobbed as tears fled down her cheeks. "SNAP OUT OF YOUR GOD DAMN FANTASY! I'M PREGNANT WITH YOUR BABY AND YOU DON'T GIVE A DAMN!" She started towards him. "The act's over. You choose. Your fucking reputation, or the most important thing in your life."

He stood, silent, like he didn't hear a word she said.

"I'm not dealing with this... " She cried and stormed out of the cafeteria.

Suddenly, anger bubbled inside of him.

He looked out among the people, and then at the hallway which Gabriella was walking out of his life from.

"Alright... " He looked over at Gabriella. "I got her pregnant back in October. I've been dating her since December."

One of his best friends looked over at him. "She's a fucking nerd- "

"I DON'T CARE IF SHE'S SMART! I LOVE HER! AND I LOVE OUR BABY!" He screamed in his face, and then ran down the hallway towards Gabriella.

She didn't bother to look over her shoulder.

"Gabriella!" He grabbed her shoulder.

"Get the fuck away from me!" She pushed him away. "I'm fed up with your shit!"

"No, baby!" He pushed her against the locker, and held her tight as she struggled. "I love you! I'm sorry- "

"I don't want your god damn sorries- "

He cut her off with a long, passionate kiss that made her heart flip. He grabbed her hands and sucked on her lips so hard that her head was lifted as he pulled back a little.

As he pulled away for air, she opened her mouth to complain, but only got his name out before he dove back in, kissing her with such great passion that she couldn't be mad at him for long.

And, everyone in the lunch room was watching.

He pulled away a little, looking into her eyes. "I promised you I would be here for you. I'm sorry."

"Sorry doesn't cut it, Troy. I've had billions of sorries in my life."

"How about I love you and you have no choice but to say it back?"

She looked over at all the people, then became sarcastic. "And you're going to act like this never happened when you're around your friends."

He shook his head. "No. I love you." He pushed her harder against the wall. "I love you so much, Brie... So, so god damn much! I want you here! Please!"

She bursted into tears. "How do I know that when all you want to do is go fuck other girls?"

"I don't!" He ran his fingers across her arm. "I haven't had sex since the last time I had sex with you! Honest! I swear on our baby's life!" He started to change the subject. "I would do anything to be with you! You're the only person I've ever been with that I've had these feelings for! You're my baby girl!" He stroked her cheek a little. "I really do love you!"

She sobbed. "You really mean all that?"

He nodded.

She looked down at their hands. "Are you going to walk me to next period?"

He grinned. "I'll _carry_ you to next period."

She looked over at all the people. "Alright... "

"Now don't cry anymore, okay?" He wiped her tears away with the pad of his thumb. "Daddy's got you."

She nodded a little and leaned into him as he planted a kiss on her head. He rocked her back and forth a little in his arms, rubbing her back a little.

Everything would be okay.


	16. Adult Talk

A month passed. It was April, and Gabriella was just over five months pregnant.

The fight had been long enough...

They finally could walk through public without having to hide anything.

They were together, she was pregnant.

Nothing could stop them.

Not even...

Troy's mom.

She sat across from them with Jack, about six feet apart from eachother.

It was like a prison sentence.

"Do you know why I brought you here?" She crossed her fingers.

They both looked at eachother.

"There are some major issues we all need to discuss." She looked deeply at both Gabriella and Troy, with a slight glare coming from her eyes. It scared Gabriella a little, but Troy squeezed her hand tighter.

"I want to first talk about Gabriella and about what's going on with her mom and dad."

Suddenly, Gabriella shut off.

"I don't want to hear it!" She stood up. "If that's what we came here to talk about, then I'll leave!"

"No, Brie." Troy pulled her back into her chair. "I think they just want to know a little about what's happening."

"My mom and dad are drug addicts, okay? Happy?"

"Sweetheart, I just want to know why you felt forced to leave home!" Kay grabbed her hand. "I feel as if you're hiding something from us that isn't worth holding in for the rest of your life!"

Gabriella looked at Troy for a minute. "They get so high, Kay... " Gabriella then looked over at Kay. "I don't know if I'm going to walk in from school one day and find them on the floor, dead... " Gabriella automatically started crying. "I love them so much, but I don't want to see them like that!"

"Is there any other problems that you want to get off your chest?" Jack leaned in a little. "We're here for you. We understand what's going on."

She looked at her and Troy's hands. "When my dad found out I was having sex with Troy, he beat me... " Gabriella pulled her shirt down a little over her left shoulder and showed them a large cut across the top of her shoulder, which still was trying to heal. It was surrounded by black and blue large bruises. "I didn't want him to know I was pregnant, because he would have did the same thing."

"Oh, Gabriella... " Kay put her hand over her mouth. "Has this been happening for a long time?"

She shook her head. "It just happened once... "

Kay grimaced and looked at Jack. "That's horrible, Gabriella... "

She pulled her shirt back over the cut. "I don't feel safe there anymore... "

Jack sat back in his chair. "How did you get here?"

"I called Troy because I needed a ride to my friend's house, but he decided to bring me here. That's how."

Kay sat up a little. "Alright, well, next subject... " She looked over at Troy. "You said you broke up with Ally, right?"

He nodded.

"And you're with Gabriella now?"

He nodded again.

"So, what are you two planning on doing with this baby?"

Gabriella raised an eyebrow. "What do you mean?"

"Are you planning on keeping it?"

"Of course. I've got enough heartbreak, and I'm not going to break my heart again trying to hand this baby off to some stranger."

"Are you going to find somewhere else to live, are you staying here, or are you going to move to Lousiana with Troy?"

"I was planning on staying here... " She looked up at them. "If you don't mind- "

"No, we don't mind at all. It's not that." Jack looked Gabriella directly in the eyes. "Now, I know you're due in July. Are you going to be here when she has the baby, Troy?"

"Yeah. Why?"

"Well, you'll be in Lousiana."

"I'll fly back up here."

"Then how are you planning on seeing this baby? Are you going to come back up here every day or what?"

"I haven't figured that out." Troy squeezed Gabriella's hand once. "But I'll figure it out."

"You better. You have four months, and althought that seems like a lot of time, it really isn't." Jack stood up. "I'm going to get some coffee. Anyone want something?"

"Coffee." Kay looked up at him.

Troy looked at Gabriella. "Want something?"

She shook her head.

"Alright, bring me a float." Troy leaned back in his chair and yawned.

Kay listened as Jack struggled to make a pot of coffee. "I'll be back." She ran into the kitchen.

Troy ran his fingers through his hair and looked over at Gabriella. "I'm getting my own apartment in Lousiana, Brie." He stroked her arm a little. "You can come with me. You can transfer down there."

"But you can't be my legal guardian!" She sighed. "I have to have a legal guardian at all times. You have to be 21, unless you have a baby before then."

He bit his lip. "I'll figure it out."

A couple minutes later, Kay set Troy's root beer float in front of him and then sat across from him with her coffee. Jack did the same.

"Okay... " Kay looked at Jack. "We were talking, and I came up with a solution to this problem... What if you transfered colleges?" She looked at Troy. "You'll still get free tuition. It'll just be here in Ohio.

Troy raised an eyebrow. "Do you _really_ think I'm about to switch from the best playing football college to some shitty college here in Ohio? No. I offered for Gabriella to move in with me. Case closed."

"Are you?" Kay glanced at Gabriella.

She stood up. "I don't know! Are the questions over?" She sighed. "I don't want to be bombarded with questions I don't know the answers to!"

Kay looked helpless. "No, no sweetheart! We're not trying to override you with questions! We are just trying to find answers!"

"If you want answers, then ask me sometime later. I don't feel like playing 20 questions."

"I'm sorry is we made you upset... " Kay sighed.

Gabriella glanced at Troy. "I just don't feel like being bothered today... "

"That's fine." Kay stood up. "When you want to talk to us, you can always, always come to us. Okay?"

Gabriella nodded.

Troy stood up.

"Freeze." Kay looked at Troy. "I'm not done with you."

Troy slowly sat back down.

Gabriella freely went upstairs.

Kay and Jack both sat down.

Jack glared at Troy. "How the _hell_ did you convince her to have sex with you?"

Troy stood up. "I'm not talking about this- "

"Sit back down!" Kay raised an eyebrow.

Silently, he sat back down.

"How did you do it? You took that sweet, innocent little girl and turned her into some machine that just wants someone to love!"

"I didn't turn her into anything! She wanted love, I gave it to her! Plain and simple!"

"You got her pregnant!" Jack shook his head with a disgusted look on his face. "She's fourteen years old, and now, she's going to give birth in four months."

"She'll be fifteen by then- "

"That's not the point!" Kay said. "She had the best outlook right now, because all she thinks she needs is you and this baby, Troy. She needs more than just you and a baby. She needs someone to look up to, a good role model. Right now, the people she is around are molding who this girl will become. I don't want her to turn into a little prostitute that shows her body for money! I care about this girl, whether you think so or not! She is the mother of my first grandchild! I don't want her to end up like half the slutty girls in this neighborhood!"

Troy growled. "SHE ISN'T GOING TO TURN INTO A SLUT!"

"She's headed that way!" Jack glared heavily at Troy. "Look at her, Troy! What happens when one day, you leave? How is she going to make money? She can't get a job, she doesn't have a car, and she doesn't have a house to raise her child in! She has to make money somehow!"

"I'm not leaving her! Jesus christ mom and dad, I love her! I'm not going to pick up and leave when we have a baby together!"

"Troy, you're not going to settle for anything less than a skinny, slutty, popular girl! You know it just as well as we do!" Kay sighed. "Just admit it! That's all you want! You want the jock life, and that life includes lots of girls, popularity, and money. You're not going to settle for a very smart young lady who is innocent."

"I'll settle for Gabriella anyday!" Troy felt a couple hot tears running down his cheeks. "What the hell is wrong with you? I love her! I can't fucking even walk around this house without being told that I'm just putting on an act. Yeah, I used her for fucking sex at first, but don't you see that I really do love her?" He stood up. "DAMN IT!"

"Sit!" Jack pointed to his seat.

"No! You aren't my fucking boss! I'm eighteen, and I can do whatever the fuck I please!"

"You are in MY house under MY rules, so SIT!"

Troy growled and slunk back into his seat.

"You're eighteen and you act like you're two." Kay shook her head. "You need to really grow up. You'll have a baby in four months that you won't know a damn thing about taking care of it."

"You'll see... " Troy crossed his arms. "I'm perfectly capable of taking care of myself, Gabriella, and my kid."

A moment of silence came across all of them.

"Can I go?"

"Go." Jack sighed.

Troy got up and started up the stairs.

"I can't believe we raised such an ass of a kid." Jack sipped his coffee.

"KIDS ARE WHAT THEIR PARENTS ARE!" Troy yelled from upstairs.

"THEN LOOKS LIKE YOUR KID IS GOING TO BE AN ASS TOO!" Jack yelled back.

After that long talk, things suddenly became tense in the family.

And things became worse for Gabriella...


	17. Gabriella's Doubt

Troy stomped up the stairs, the words still glowing inside his head. 'Kids are what their parents are'.

Troy entered his room and shut the door behind him.

He came across a sight in which he didn't expect to see.

"Brie? Baby, what's wrong?"

She was looking down at the floor. Tears dripped off her face like she was producing rain.

"Come on, tell me what's wrong- "

"You fucking used me... "

"What? What are you talking about? I didn't use you."

She stood up. "DON'T LIE TO ME!" She screamed, two inches away from his face. "I JUST HEARD YOU!"

He didn't want to fight.

"Okay, I used you at first for sex, but I really do love you! I've fallen in love with you! Please don't be mad. I really don't feel like fighting."

"Bullshit." She glared into his eyes. "This baby was created out of your need for some sex. It doesn't seem like you care that much... "

"Oh god Gabriella... " He sat down on the bed. "You know I love the baby, and I love you! What else do I have to say- "

"You've been using me this entire time... " She sobbed. "You don't want anyone at school to know we're together, or that this is your baby. Are you _really_ that embaressed of me? Am I too smart for you? Am I not popular enough for you?"

"You're perfect! How many time do I have to say it before it gets through your head?" He stood up again. "You are perfect the way you are, and you don't need to change for anyone. I love you the way you are! You're beautiful, sexy, you have a great personality, and I could care less if you're not popular or if you're smart. I love you, Brie!"

"Liar." She snickered and shook her head. "You just want me here for some easy sex, huh? Well guess what? I'm not going to be here for easy sex. Go find a slut and get her pregnant." Gabriella searched Troy's closet.

"What are you doing?" He walked towards her.

"Looking for my fucking suitcase. I'm not staying here. I'm sick of you and your bullshit."

"Gabriella!" He grabbed her shoulders and jerked her away from his closet. He sat her down on the bed.

"Let go of me!" She kicked him a couple times and tried to bite him.

"You'll fucking listen to me right here, and right now... " He kneeled in front of her. "You _aren't_ leaving."

"Yes I am!"

"No, you aren't!" He held her tighter. "You aren't just going to take off!"

She sobbed. "What's the use of staying? You don't love me."

"Yes I do!" He stared into her eyes. "Damn it Gabriella, I love you and the baby more than ANYTHING in this world!"

"But you used me- "

"That was five months ago." He ran his fingers through his hair. "I don't want you to leave! I love you, Brie... "

"No- "

"Yes!" He searched her eyes. "I love you!"

She sobbed loudly and buried her head into her hands. "I don't know what to do... "

"Stay here." He ran his finger through her hair and tucked a loose strand of hair behind her ear.

She looked up at him helplessly. "But- "

"Shh... " He kissed her lips once. "Just stay... "

Gabriella sobbed once again and leaned against him. "I want you to love me... "

"I love you, baby girl... "

"But you don't- "

"I do, Brie, I really do... " He rubbed her back a little.

"Prove it. How much do you love me?"

He grabbed something out of his back pocket. "How about this?"

It was a little black box.

Suddenly, Gabriella thought that it was a ring.

She didn't want to get married.

But as he opened it, it opened to a pretty gold necklace. It was a large heart covered with diamond flakes.

She looked at him with a shocked expression on her face. "How... "

"I spent almost 300 dollars on this a long, long time ago... " He pulled the necklace out and flattened out all the knots. "I promised myself I would give it to the person I wanted to be with for the rest of my life. I'm being totally honest. My dad went with me to pick it out when I was about ten. I have the receipt and everything."

She looked at him. "Who have you given it to so far?"

"Nobody." He unclasped it. "You're the first and last person who will wear it."

He hung it around her neck and clasped it in the back. He pulled her hair over it and then tucked her hair behind her ears. "Do you like it?"

"I love it... " A little smile came from the corners of her mouth. "Thank you."

"Now, does that prove my love to you, or do you want me to stand on one knee and propose to you?" He grinned.

"No, this is perfect... " She leaned forward and grabbed him tightly in her arms. "I'm sorry- "

"No, I'm sorry." He kissed her cheek. "I should have never used you. I'm truely sorry that I've caused you a lot of suffering for the past couple months."

And with a kiss, everything became better.


	18. Summer

Summer.

Spring's bloomed flowers stayed, but the sun's rays washed all the winter's water away. It sizzled and cracked the earth's skin, but made the little earthlings happy with its warmth. Finally, the beaches were warm enough, and everyone returned to their favorite summer vacation spots.

All but Gabriella.

The month was July, July 4th for specifics, and Independence Day flags were flying high in the sky.

Parades of people marched down the streets, holding sparklers and throwing candy to the crowd of people dressed in red, white, and blue.

In Ohio, they didn't do that.

But in Louisiana, they did.

Gabriella sat on Troy's lap in the grass as the parade went past them, and she was all giggles and smiles as Uncle Sam waved to her.

She looked at Troy in excitement and then waved back.

"I love it here! Can I stay here forever?"

Troy laughed. "Babe, I told you that you could move in with me."

"But I don't want to stress you out with college and stuff." She sighed. "I wish I was eighteen already... "

"Well, you're fifteen. Three years to go." He kissed her cheek.

"And you'll be nineteen in four days." She grinned at him. "Do you think Ainsley will be born close to your birthday?"

He wrapped his arms around Gabriella's stomach, which was still small, but was catching up. "Ah, who knows if Leah will be born close to my birthday- "

"Ainsley!"

"Leah!"

"Ainsley."

"Ainsley Leah, okay? How about that?" Troy raised an eyebrow.

"Ainsley Leah Bolton. Maybe." Gabriella grinned. "I sort of wanted the baby to have the same initials as you, but it doesn't really matter."

"There's not many girls names that start with T. Tea, Talullah, Tina, Terra, Tanna... And I can't name any more... But I really don't like any of those. It doesn't matter, anyway."

She looked back at the parade, which was almost finished.

"You wanna go find a spot for the fireworks tonight?" He said, getting up.

She grabbed his hand and pulled herself up. "I guess. It's up to you."

He lead her across the lawn and towards his truck. "Well, we can go walk around campus if you want."

"No walking for me. My legs hurt enough after that damn check-up yesterday. I had to do water treadmilling for a half hour until my blood pressure started to go up."

He opened the door in his truck for her and then ran around to the other side.

They shut their doors, and Troy started the truck.

"Are you okay?" He said, looking over at her.

Suddenly, Gabriella became dizzy.

"No... " She shook her head. 'I'm really dizzy... "

Troy got a water bottle from the back of his truck and handed it to her. "Water?"

She took it and gulped it completely down.

After, she threw it in the back, still dizzy.

"It didn't help."

"Maybe if we just sit here- "

"NO!" She looked over at him, as if he was about to kill her.

"Okay!" He started down the road a little. "Better?"

She layed her head back a little and groaned. "No."

"What's wrong, baby?" He grabbed one of her hands.

"Just take me back to your apartment... "

...

Troy fumbled with his keys to open his apartment door as Gabriella freaked out.

"Why the hell am I dizzy?" She sobbed and pulled her hair back.

"I don't know, baby." He finally got the door open and pushed her inside. "Do you want me to call the hospital and ask them- "

"I'm not ready to have this baby yet!" She screamed in his face as she sat down.

"I was just going to call and ask- "

"NO!" She screamed again.

"Jesus christ Gabriella, what do you want me to do?"

"Hold me... " She started getting hysterical. "Make it better... "

Obediently, he sat beside her and grabbed her in his arms, where he rocked her quivering body back and forth as she buried herself into his chest.

"Just calm down- "

"I don't want to calm down!" She sobbed. "Just hold me!"

"I am, baby! I'm doing the best I can!" His eyes got wide. "What else do you want me to do, for crying out loud?"

"Nothing... Just stay here with me... " She sobbed.

Her body's quivering got worse, and she became very frightful.

Tears fell down her cheeks. "I'm scared, Troy... "

"I'm right here baby... " He stroked her hair and held her tighter. "I'm going to give the hospital a call just to ask some advice... "

He pulled his cell phone out of his pocket and called the hospital's number.

"Baton Rouge Hospital, how may I help you?"

"Hi, my girlfriend has been really dizzy for the past half hour, and I just wanted to ask what we can do."

"Any medical conditions?"

"Well, she's pregnant."

"How old is she?"

"Fifteen." Troy ran a hand through Gabriella's hair.

"And how far along is she?"

"She'll be nine months on the 15th."

"It could be a variety of things. Some women experience dizziness in the earliest signs of labor, and since she is so close to her due date, this could be one, but dizziness can also be caused from an arising hemorrhage. I would recommend bringing her in just for her and the baby's safety."

Troy looked down at Gabriella. "Okay, thanks. I'll be bringing her in shortly." He flipped his phone shut. "They said it can be from labor or a hemmorhage that's going to happen, so they told me to bring you in."

Suddenly, Gabriella's heart dropped.

"Troy, I'm not ready- "

"I'm right here, okay baby?" He kissed her forehead and picked her body up from the couch. "Let's just go, okay?"


	19. Heart Failure

Nothing but anxiety and stress fell upon Gabriella's and Troy's bodies.

No results came back from the lab.

She wasn't in a confirmed labor, nor had they confirmed anything yet.

She looked over at Troy, who was silent.

"Are you okay?" She said quietly.

He sat back in his chair and rocked a little bit. "Yeah." He looked at her. "I'm more worried about you than anything."

She looked down at her feet.

"I'm getting really worried. Why haven't they said anything yet?"

"I don't know." Troy sighed. "But I'm sure Ainsley will be okay. She's a trooper. She's been a trooper through all this."

"You really think so?" She cracked a little smile.

He smiled back. "I know so. She's my daughter."

She layed back in her bed and looked up at the ceiling. "I just wish the doctor would tell us already... "

"Hey, we've already spent three days waiting in this room, so what good will another three days bring?" He ran his fingers through his hair.

"Do you think I'm in labor yet?"

"Probably." He laughed a little. "It's about time."

"She's gotta surface sometime."

Suddenly, a doctor rushed in.

"Alright sweetie, I know this is short notice... " He grabbed the ultrasound monitor and the stick and some gel. "But we just found something on the scan that is getting me a little worried about this baby."

And Gabriella became completely concerned. "What? What's wrong with my baby?"

The doctor pulled Gabriella shirt up and gobbed some gel on her stomach. "We think that your baby has a heart mumur and possibly heart failure. We can't be completely sure, though... "

He turned on the monitor. Troy got up and automatically took one of Gabriella's hands.

All three of them stared at the monitor.

He set the stick on Gabriella's stomach and began to swivel it around.

"Heartbeat, heartbeat, heartbeat... " The doctor chanted to himself. "Come on... "

He searched and searched.

Finally, a very, very feint heartbeat surfaced on the screen.

He found the baby's body, and started searching around it.

He got on his little radio. "I need a couple nurses in roon 107 and a Pitocin shot. Bring the delivery tools- "

Gabriella bursted into wailing tears.

"Listen Gabriella, you're not in labor, but we're going to have to induce you." He shut the monitor off and wiped Gabriella's stomach off, the put the ultrasound away. "Your baby's heart is failing. We have to get the baby out as soon as possible.

More screams and cries.

"Gabriella!" Troy held her body tightly against his and stroked her hair. "They're inducing you so that she'll live! Please, you need to stay strong! I'm here, and we're going to have our little girl in less than a half hour- "

"SHE'S FUCKING DYING TROY!" Gabriella screamed.

"Don't say that!" He said as tears started pouring down his cheeks. "She's a strong, strong baby!"

"JUST GET HER OUT!" She screamed to the doctor.

Gabriella's IV was injected with a quick dose of Pitocin, and within minutes, her body started contracting.

"It won't be long." The doctor said, preparing his tools. "I just broke your water, and the baby's coming down very, very quickly."

Troy got his cell phone out. "I need to let my mom and dad know real quick. I'll be right back. Let me know when it's time, okay?"

The doctor nodded as Troy stepped outside.

And suddenly, Gabriella's perfect vision of a healthy, happy baby would be turned upsidown.


	20. Pushed Overboard

It took two hours...

Finally surfacing, the doctor pulled the baby out of Gabriella.

Troy stared into Gabriella's eyes, and he pulled her head to look at him.

"Look at me. Don't look over there."

"My baby- "

"She'll be fine." Troy kissed Gabriella's forehead. "I'm going to go see what's going on, okay?"

As Troy turned, the baby automatically started crying.

Troy glanced over the doctor's head. "How is she?"

"_He_, and not so well."

"It's a boy?"

"Yeah."

Troy looked back at Gabriella. "Did you hear that?"

She nodded.

"All this time, the midwife told us it was a girl- "

The doctor pulled out a long syringe with a very long needle.

"What the hell is that?"

"This should boost his heart rate so we can determine whether or not his heart is failing and we have to do surgery."

Troy watched as the doctor pushed the long needle into his son's leg, and squeezed every little drop of medicine out of that syringe.

He broke the needle off as he pulled it out, and threw it away.

Troy looked back at Gabriella with a smile on his face. "Zane? Please?"

Gabriella rolled her eyes. "Yeah sure, Zane Troy Bolton."

"Oh god Brie, he's got some long fingers and- "

Troy's worst nightmare came alive.

Zane's face started turning blue.

"What's going on?"

Suddenly, the nurses gathered and pushed Troy out of the way.

"We need to clear his passageways!" The doctor said, grabbing the bulb and shoving it down Zane's throat.

Obviously, that didn't work because Zane started gasping for breath.

"DO SOMETHING!" Troy demanded as Zane wiggled back and forth, trying to cry, but couldn't get air.

"I'm starting CPR." The doctor pushed on Zane's chest with his fingers, then listened for his heartbeat. He did it again. And again. And again.

He checked Zane's pulse.

"Zane!" Troy screamed as tears fell down his cheeks. "Fucking do something, you dumbass!"

"I'm sorry- "

"Do CPR again, clear his throat, something!"

"Mr. Bolton, he's gone- "

"HE'S NOT GONE!" Troy struggled to reach Zane, but the doctors pulled him away.

Gabriella was mortified. Her hands flew to her mouth and she began to cry hysterically. "MY BABY!"

"DO SOMETHING!" Troy was pushed and locked out of the room.

Something told Troy that life would soon become harder than it had ever been.

...

Two hours passed.

Troy sat on a chair outside Gabriella's room, fumbling with his fingers as his red eyes tried to focus on something other than watching his son's face turn blue.

But, it was too hard.

The doctor suddenly opened the door and shut it behind him.

"Mr. Bolton, I'm very sorry. His airways closed up and we weren't able to save him. We're going to run some tests on him to see what happened."

Troy didn't respond.

"Do you want to say goodbye to him?"

"I would rather kill myself than say goodbye to my dead son... " Troy sobbed.

"I'm truely sorry... " He sighed and walked down the hallway to his next patient, like Zane never existed.

It was like the entire pregnancy was there for nothing.

It was like god was trying to take another living, breathing soul away from Gabriella just to make her heart break a little more. Her heart was already on edge.

And Zane's death pushed her overboard.


	21. Prologue 3

(A/N: This is prologue 3.)

Troy sat in his rocking chair, and rocked back and forth, listening to the squeaks of its old, wooden qualities.

Since sitting in the room, a lady came in three more times to paint three more leaves. All were girls.

No boys.

Zane was the only boy.

The rocking chair squeaked more as Troy rocked faster, trying to rock the life away from his own lifeless body.

He only had one thing left in this world to love.

Gabriella.

And he knew that she felt unloved.

She needed to know that there was one person who _always_ loved her, no matter what. It didn't matter that Zane was dead. It didn't matter that her parents hated her. It didn't matter what anyone thought of her.

Troy loved her the way she was.

He looked up as many sparkles from the ceiling twinkled, as if they were winking at Troy.

"What else can possibly go wrong now?" He sighed and looked back up at Zane's leaf. "What other person in my life is going to be gone?"

And that would soon become ironic.

He stood up from his seat, wiped his eyes, and walked out of the nursery visitation room.

As he walked down the hallway, it felt like he was walking down the lonely road to hell.

Hell, in which would lead him to the worst possible thing that could ever happen...

As he approached the door, a guard stopped him.

"Where are you going?"

"My girlfriend is in here. Gabriella Montez. She gave birth about four hours ago."

"I can't let you in. Doctor's orders."

"What's going on- "

"I can't tell you."

Troy scratched his head and walked to the front desk.

"I have a question. What's going on in room 107? My girlfriend just gave birth four hours ago to our son, who died, and now they aren't letting me in the room to see my girlfriend."

The nurse pulled her scanner out. "Are you over eighteen?"

"Yeah. I'm nineteen. My name's Troy Bolton- "

"Oh... " The nurse covered her mouth.

"What?" Troy leaned over the desk.

"I'm sorry- "

"For Zane, okay, I've had enough sorries today. I want to see Gabriella."

"No, I'm sorry about Gabriella."

"Why?" Troy raised an eyebrow. "Gabriella's fine."

"No... " The nurse shook her head. "She was pronounced dead about five minutes ago- "

"WHAT?" Troy's eyes got wide. "You must have the wrong Gabriella. Her name is Gabriella Anne Montez, born on June 18th, 1993. She's fifteen- "

"Yes, Gabriella Anne Montez was pronounced dead. I'm very sorry, sir."

"No!" He became outraged. "She's not dead! She was fine!"

"She commited suicide, Mr. Bolton. She slit her throat."

"NO!" Troy screamed. "SHE'S ALIVE!"

"Sir!" The nurse stood up as Troy ran down the hallway.

"LET ME IN!" Troy said, trying to push back the bodyguard. "MY BABY GIRL! MY GABI!" He sobbed.

"I can't let you in!"

"GABRIELLA!" He cried and sobbed. "GABRIELLA!"

The doctor opened the door.

"Mr. Bolton, I'm terribly sorry... We just left her for a few minutes, and we came back. She cut her throat. She commited suicide. I'm very, very sorry- "

"GABRIELLA!" Troy sunk to the ground on his knees and balled up. "My baby girl... I love her so much, and she never thought I did... I love her... "

...

It was a very, very slow evening.

Troy sat outside Gabriella's hospital room, crying for two days straight.

He didn't move, eat, or even think.

He wanted Gabriella.

Her body was transfered back to Ohio for her funeral and to be buried.

But Troy sat still in his spot, not budging.

The security guard walked up to him and sighed.

"Sir, you have been sitting here for two days now. I think you should go home."

Troy shook his head.

"I don't want to have to force you out... " The guard crossed his arms. "Really, I don't."

"Fucking shoot me. Right here. In the head... " Troy sobbed. "I have nothing to live for... "

"Come on man, you have something." The guard squatted down. "Your parents are waiting for you at home in Ohio."

"Screw them." Troy sniffled. "They just want to say 'I told you so' and laugh at me."

"I don't think they would do that." The guard said.

"You don't know them. Fuck me. Fuck my life. Kill me now. I wanna be with my Gabriella and Zane... "

A doctor approached Troy.

"Mr. Bolton? I have some news that I think you'll be very, very happy to hear."

"What the fuck could be happy?"

"Your son."

Troy lifted his head up. His eyes were crusted and red, and his entire face was red.

"Zane? What?"

"He's alive."

Troy's heart stopped.

"No... " Troy shook his head. "There's not fucking way... "

"Yes. It seems we made a mistake. He started breathing a couple minutes after, but one of the staff switched the names of Zane and another dead baby. We even went as far as taking a sample of his DNA, Gabriella's DNA, and a piece of your hair and we tested it, and in fact, that was Zane."

Troy stood up. "Where is he?"

"He's at the nursery. Go down there and see him. The nurse is waiting for you."

Troy never ran so fast.

He bolted down all the hallways like it was a matter of life and death.

As he approached the nursery, he first knocked on the door, and the nurse happily opened the door for him.

"Troy Bolton?"

"Yeah." Troy walked in, his entire body shaking. "Where's Zane?"

"First, I need you to sit down... " She smiled at him. "You're a little shaky. Are you sure you can handle this?"

"I need to see him." Troy sobbed. "His mom commited suicide over him. I need him... He's the only part of Gabriella I have left... "

"I understand." She said, walking towards the nursery door. "I'll be right in with him."

Troy tried to get himself together. Unfortuanately, it didn't help, because all he could think about was Gabriella.

"Alright, here he is... " The nurse had a large smile on her face as she walked towards him with a blanket.

She gently placed the baby into Troy's arms.

Automatically, Troy bursted into tears. He shivered with the fact that he was holding the thing that was inside of Gabriella for nine months. The thing that kept him together all that time. The thing that Gabriella wanted the most in her life...

As the nurse left, Troy started rocking back and forth, as if he was trying to stop the baby from crying, but in reality, he was soothing himself.

"I loved your mommy so much... " Troy sobbed and ran his finger across Zane's blonde hair. "She meant so much to me, and she barely knew it... She was the most important thing in my life... " Troy's tears didn't stop. "And now you're the most important thing in my life... "

Zane had big, blue eyes like Troy, and they opened up to Troy like he knew Troy was his daddy.

"I love you, little man... " Troy kissed Zane's forehead. "But I'm not keeping your name Zane... " Troy chuckled a little. "Your mom wanted to name you Talen. So, your name is Talen, but I'm going to spell it T-A-L-O-N, like a bird's claw. Talon Beau Bolton. How does that sound? Do you like that?"

Troy looked up at Talon's leaf, which still said Zane, but would soon be changed to Talon.

And Gabriella's legacy would soon live on in Talon's heart.


	22. Time Heals No Wounds

His body searched the dark fog, looking for an answer, looking for some type of clue to lead him to his death. Something. To be with Gabriella was his priority.

"Troy... "

A soft, melancholy voice rose from the fog.

Troy looked up as if he was being pulled towards the voice.

"Troy... "

The voice was cherubic and sweet, and rose Troy fo his feet. It was like a metropolis of fog, and you couldn't see your hand in front of your face, but he pushed on. He dragged himself through the heavy fog, breathing heavily, but didn't give up for one second. He looked up, watching at the fog became even thicker.

"Gabriella!" He screamed into the fog.

"Troy!"

"Gabriella?"

Suddenly, his eyesight and hearing became clear as adrenaline began to pump quickly through his strong veins. His breath became visible in front of him, and suddenly, the need to run became very, very strong. He was clueless as where to run, but he knew one thing.

He had to find Gabriella.

Troy bolted into one direction, running as hard and as fast as he could, looking aimlessly around as different places to see a glimpse of her.

His legs began to feel like weights were slowly pulling him back.

He dragged himself on, until his legs no longer could even move.

"GABRIELLA!" He yelled as loud as he could.

"Troy?" The voice was close.

"Gabi!" He sobbed and tried to stand up. "I'm coming! Stay where you are! I won't let you go!"

"Please, hurry!" She yelled.

Troy put all his might into dragging himself into the direction of her voice. He gripped the unstable ground and used all of his strength to pull himself. It was the hardest thing he had ever done. He wasn't about to give up, though.

He would find her if it killed him.

One hand after another, he climbed towards the voice.

Just like one step at a time.

It seemed like hours were passing, but it was only a few seconds.

Finally, he saw her...

The fog cleared, and a beautiful goddess stood in front of him. Her dress was long, white, and flowing in the imaginary with beautiful gold, sparkling lace at every end of the dress. All throughout the dress were little twinkling sequins which sparkled as if they every single little disk was polished individually and hand-sewn on to the dress. Her fingernails were semi-long and painted white, clipped and clean to perfection, in which it contracted with her light olive skin, softer and more beautiful than ever. Her eyes were gently touched in black eyeliner and just a touch of mascara held her eyelashes up and out. A blended white and peach mixture of solution set itself into place as she blinked, and set itself under her eyelids, too. Nothing more than a beautiful, natural shade of foundation and lip gloss added the finishing touch to her angelic face, which was softer and showed that she could be a soft person. Her dark brown, usually straight hair hung down in soft curls, but wasn't too curly. They were perfect. Her headpeace was made of beautiful white lilacs and lillies, which in fact were completely real and not fake, and all sewn perfectly in line. It sat gently on the crown of her head, as is a finishing touch to the beauty that already portrayed itself in front of Troy.

He stood mesmorized by the beauty in which stood in front of him, a beauty which no other man ever had the chance to see. It was like she was a fake, porcelain doll which people were afraid to touch because its beauty and grace portrayed it as a fragile object.

Troy didn't want to touch Gabriella, because she was so beautiful.

The weight was lifted off his legs.

He stood up very, very slowly, as if not able to believe the sight in front of him.

"Gabriella?"

"Troy?" She reached her hand out. "Save me... "

He held his hand out, and slowly reached out towards her beautiful body. Their fingers were millimeters apart, and they reached closer and closer and closer-

_GOOOOOOOOOOOOD morning Baton Rouge!_

Troy's eyes shot open.

_ This is Eric Igneo with Good Morning America, channel 98.7 on your radio. It is the 1st of October in 2009, 7:00 AM, and we're here first to give you the weather for-_

He was lying on his stomach on the bed, his head turned to the side where the alarm clock and his radio sat on his dresser. His fingers and toes were all numb. One of his arms was hanging off the side of the bed and both feet were hanging off the bottom of the bed.

He saw four tall boy Budweisers sitting on the dresser.

Sitting up, he was dazed for a minute, as to be thinking about where he was and what he did the night before. He was dressed in a semi-tight grey american eagle tshirt, with A. Eagle written in blue on the left side, in bold handwriting, and the holey jeans he wore the day before. He even still had his socks and his black sneakers on. His brown hair was flat on his head, and his blue eyes looked straight ahead at a beige looking wall. The bitter-sweet taste of alcohol rested on his tongue. He looked over toward the tall boys, and picked each up, swirling it around a little.

Each was empty.

Behind those was a large bottle of liquor - half full.

He got drunk last night.

When he finally realized what was going on, he slammed his hand on his ongoing radio, switching it off. Then, tears started pouring from his cobalt eyes. He pulled his knees to his chest and sobbed a couple times as he rocked himself back and forth, chanting to himself the words he always told himself at the beginning of the day.

"You need to pull yourself together, Bolton. You're a man. You are 20 years old. You are on the LSU college football team."

But, that didn't help.

He cried even harder.

"Gabi baby... " He quivered. "I'm so sorry... So, so sorry... "

He felt horrible for everything he put Gabriella through. Getting her pregnant, leading her to believe he didn't love her, denying her in front of everyone at his high school, being a selfish asshole... Things like that made him ever so much regret that one night that he wanted know more about her cousin Mark.

That is why Troy went to her house in the first place. No, not for questions for Spanish. No, not to sleep with her. Not to try to hook up with her.

He just wanted to know how her cousin Mark was doing.

They had been best friends until Mark graduated two years before Troy. When Mark graduated, he moved away and never tried to contact Troy again.

That's all he wanted from Gabriella.

But, something pulled him to her, something very strong and very, very passionate. Butterflies flew around in his stomach when he looked at her.

_That_ is love

True love.

And now, he's left lifeless, sitting in a bed in Baton Rouge, Louisiana, with a hangover, and crying over someone he knew for a mere ten months.

Someone he dated for only six.

And now, he had no life and no will to live or carry on. Compared to his old life, he felt like nobody liked him anymore (although that was very untrue because he still had girls, his best friends, and every bit of fame he did in high school), not because he got a girl pregnant, but because he chose a path that meant raising his son. But, he had his beautiful son that depended on him day in and day out, and _that_ was now most important to Troy...

He set his face in his knees and sobbed a couple times, his body jerking as he tried desperately to stop the tears and to stop the nonsense of worrying about Gabriella over a year after her death. He still couldn't decide whether August 8th was the best or the worst day of his life. Sure, it was his birthday, but Gabriella commited suicide that day because she felt as is nobody loved her. But, it was a good day because Talon was born on that day.

Should it be a good or bad day to celebrate?

His senses calmed a little, but the crying didn't stop. He felt helpless, as if he was chasing after something that was not there.

_He _was_ chasing after something that wasn't there._

Suddenly, a scream.

Troy bolted out of his bed and into the room beside him. His eyes were wide, his body was shaking violently, and he was panting. His heart beat very, very quickly, and his breathing rapidly increased. He looked around, balling his hand up in a fist, as he was ready to fight to the death for his son.

He sighed in relief.

"Talon... " Troy walked towards his son's crib and picked him up out of it. "You can't scare daddy like that... "

Of course, Talon passed it off as if he did nothing wrong. His innocent face showed nothing but confusion. His blonde hair layed flat over his head, like his daddy's, and his blue eyes were a little bloodshot, because he obviously had just woken up.

Troy set Talon back in his crib. "I'll be right back." He grabbed Talon's sippy cup out of his crib and went into the kitchen, rinsed it out, and poured some cold milk into it. Then, he raced back into Talon's room and handed him his sippy cup before Troy grabbed a couple things before taking Talon in his room.

He set those on his bed.

"Talon, you wanna sleep with me for a while?"

Talon dropped his sippy cup and help his arms up, as if to say 'I'm game'.

Troy picked him up out of his crib and his sippy, then walked down the hallway to his room. He set Talon and his sippy on the bed, then pulled a couple pillows around Talon, since he rolls around.

He changed Talon quickly and found his blanket beneath the pile of things he brought into the room, covering him up with that. Talon layed back with his sippy and held it up as milk poured down his throat.

Troy cuddled up to Talon, wrapping his arm around him protectively. He stroked Talon's blonde hair, looked into Talon's blue eyes, and wondered where he would be today if he never would have had sex Gabriella that one time, just under two years ago.

He wouldn't have Talon.

Gabriella might not be dead.

Troy wouldn't be having nightmares.

He would still be with his Ally.

And he might not be scared of every girl he sees.

Talon pulled his sippy cup out of his mouth and looked over at Troy. "Daddy?"

"What Tal?" Troy looked into his eyes and ran his hand across Talon's side.

A small, creviced grin slipped from the side of Talon's mouth and then he let out a giggle.

"You're crazy." Troy smiled at Talon. "You're just like your mom."

Talon set his sippy cup in Troy's hand and rolled over.

"I'm setting this right beside you, okay?" Troy set the sippy up by Talon's feet and pulled the pillow closer to him. "You just go to bed. Daddy's right here... I won't let anything happen to you."


	23. The Box

_ Ding!_

Troy bolted out of bed and into the living room. He balled up his fist, as if to fight. Once again, his fight-or-flight senses picked up. His eyes got wide, pupils got small, his heart and breathing raced, and his entire body was tense.

_Drip, drip, drip..._

He shifted his head toward the faucet.

_Drip..._

He turned the knob to the right and turned the water off completely, wiping the faucet with his finger as he sighed completely.

He looked at the clock on the wall.

It was 8:30 in the morning and still the same day.

_Ding!_

He looked towards the door.

Walking slowly towards the door, he looked out of the eyehole. A short, chunky-looking man stood outside, carrying a bag on his side and had a blue ball cap on. He sighed and pressed the doorbell again.

Troy opened the door.

"Package delivery... " The man said. "Are you Mr. Troy Bolton?"

Troy raised an eyebrow. "Yeah?"

"Are you over eighteen?"

"I'm 20."

"ID please." He held his grubby hand out.

Troy reached in his back pocket. He pulled his wallet out and pulled his driver's license out of the front pocket, handing it to the man.

The main quickly glanced at the ID and then handed Troy back his ID. "Alright, sign here." He handed Troy a sheet of paper and a pencil.

Troy heard a couple footsteps behind him.

"Talon, what are you doing?" Troy looked back.

His blue night jumper that zipped in the front was completely unzipped. He dragged his blue silky blanket behind him and held his sippy in the same hand. He yawned and looked up at Troy.

"Go lay back down." Troy said softly. "I'll be right there little man."

He didn't listen. Instead, he plopped himself on the floor and waited for Troy, taking a drink of his milk.

He signed off on the package, and then the mailman handed him some of his mail, too. "And here's your daily mail. Thought I would give it to you because your mailbox is full."

"I just checked it yesterday... " Troy scratched his head. "Or was that the day before... Or maybe it was a week ago... "

"Have you been drinking?" The man raised one of his hairy eyebrows.

"No, no... " Troy lied. "My friend was over last night and left a can of beer here. I spilled it on myself just a couple seconds ago, so now I smell like alcohol."

"You shouldn't be drinking around that kid of yours."

"I'm not drinking!" Troy insisted. "I don't have to explain myself to you."

"You already did." The man sucked on the side of his mouth. "So why are you drinking?"

"I wasn't drinking!" Troy looked over at Talon. "I love my son, and I would never put him in danger. His mom commited suicide because she thought he was dead. Jesus christ, I've had him since he was born. I stayed up until four in the morning every god damn night trying to get him to stop screaming in my face. I skipped football practice to stay with him because his daycare was closed. I spent 1400 dollars last Christmas for him. You think I would really put him through hell? Now, get the fuck away from me and have a nice day."

Troy slammed the door in the man's face.

"Screw people. They have no business invading my life." He looked over at Talon. "Don't trust anyone, Talon. First thing I'm going to teach you. You can't trust a god damn person that walks past you. I can't even trust my mom and dad. But you can trust me." Troy set the mail on the couch and lifted Talon up. "I'll never judge you, whether you kill someone, wreck the brand new car I just bought you, or even go out and get a girl pregnant. I've been there. That's how you got here. I got your mom pregnant when she was fourteen. Long story, Tal. I'll have to tell you when you get older and you understand it more." Troy kissed Talon's cheek as he sat down on the couch with him. "I love you and you're the most important thing of my life. Don't forget that, Talon. Now, gimme a kiss."

Talon whipped around toward Troy and puckered his lips, leaned forward and gave Troy a wet, sloppy kiss on the lips.

Troy chuckled and wiped his lips off with the sleeve of his shirt. "Those lips are gonna keep the girls away if you don't learn how to keep the spit in your mouth."

Talon climbed off of Troy's lap and layed his head on the pillow by the arm of the couch. Troy grabbed his blanket and covered him up and handed him his sippy cup.

Troy turned his attention to his mail.

He picked up the stack of letters and started going through them.

"Phone bill, rent, gas bill, electric bill, college mathematics opportunities- " He cut himeslf off. "Oh hell, all these are just receipts for the payments... "

He threw all the letters away.

He grabbed the package. It filled both of his arms, and wasn't very heavy.

It was addressed to Troy, but had no address.

He pulled the tape off and flipped open the sides of the box. Inside was a letter and a ton of bubble wrap.

He pulled out a teddy bear that was medium-brown and had white under its paws and on its chest and nose. It had little x's and o's under its white feet. It was a little bigger than Troy's hand, and was filled with bean-bag balls. He next pulled out a medium-sized glass corked bottle with sand and a couple shells in it. Taped to it was three sheets of stapled paper. Under that was a photo album. He didn't look at that too much. He just set it aside. The last thing that came out of the package was a birthday card and a snow-globe.

He opened the letter and held it in front of him.

_ Dear Troy,_

_ I don't know if this is the right address, so if it isn't, please send the package back. If this is the right address and this is my baby Troy, I want you to know this is mom. I haven't talked to you ever since you called right before Gabriella gave birth to your daughter. The next thing I know, my neighbor, who is friends with Gabriella's parents, tell me that Gabriella commited suicide and that your guys' daughter was stillborn. I never got a call after the baby was born. Your father and I tried to call many times, but your cell number said it was disconnected. We tried desperately to get into contact with you. We even called LSU guidance, but they didn't give us any information. We went through Baton Rouge phonebooks, called 411, and we still couldn't get a hold of you. We even drove down there and knocked on the door, but still didn't get any answer. We figured you had moved away and changed your number, but we weren't sure._

_ Gabriella's parents wanted us to give you a couple things of Gabriella's to remember her by. The teddy bear is the teddy bear she carried around with her until she went into Junior High. They wrote x's and o's on the bottom of its feet because she used to be very attached to them and she used to cry at school because of it. She loved that teddy bear very much. She called it "Teddiursa" after the Pokemon, because when she was little and pokemon first came out, she loved it. The second thing is a bottle of sand with some shells. That sand is from Little Pine Island in Florida, the Gulf of Mexico. Just before she got pregnant she went with her uncle to her first beach in Florida. She loved it. She even wrote a story about it, which is attached to it. The next thing is a scrapbook of Gabriella, from the time she was still inside her mother up until a little while before she came to live with us. We also sent you a birthday present and a card for your last birthday._

_ Honey, we miss you. We understand that you're grieving the loss of your daughter and that you're very, very upset. We want a call, just one call to let us know where you are and you're safe. Please, I beg you. Just one call, sweetheart. I'll leave my phone number at the bottom of the letter._

_ I love you very, very much._

_ Mom._

Troy set the letter down, and looked over at Talon, who was fast asleep. He got up, took the scrapbook, and set it on a shelf where he would see it and eventually look at it. The bottled sand with the paper he set on the mantle of the fake fireplace he had installed in the wall and set the paper behind the sand. The next two objects, the snowglobe and the birthday card, he set beside the sand, setting the birthday card under the snowglobe.

He placed the bubble wrap gently in the box and folded it up, setting it aside.

He forgot one thing.

The teddy bear.

He picked it up and ran his finger across the soft fur. He picked Talon's arm up a little and slipped the bear under Talon's arm.

He pulled his phone out.

And without any hesitation, he called them.


	24. Back To Home

The phone rang in the living room.

Kay jumped out of the kitchen and went towards the phone. "Jack, watch those pancakes."

"Sure thing." He got up and trudged into the kitchen.

Kay looked at the clock. "Nobody calls until after 12... It's only 8:40 in the morning."

She picked up the phone.

"Hello?" She said unsurely.

"Mom?"

"TROY?"

"Hi mom."

"Oh my god, Troy!" She automatically bursted into tears. "Sweetheart! I god, I miss you so much!"

"I miss you too." He sat back on the couch. "I'm sorry we lost contact. I changed my cell number and I probably wasn't home when you came."

_Or he was wasted._

Kay sat down on the arm chair, astonished. "Why didn't you call?"

He sighed. "I've been... Busy... "

"Why didn't you call after Gabriella had the baby?"

"I was crushed, mom! My kid was dead!" Troy looked over at Talon. "I didn't want to talk about it!"

"How are you dealing with everything? Gabriella gone and the baby gone?"

"I don't want to talk about Gabriella, and the baby isn't gone."

"Then what happened?"

Troy looked up at the ceiling. "Gabriella had the baby, and it was alive when it came out. But, the doctor gave the baby a shot, and we thought the baby was dead, but it just had an allergic reaction to the shot and went into a small coma, and it woke up within hours. One of the staff nurses accidentally switched the tags on our baby and someone's stillborn. But, two days later, the doctor came up to me and told me that the baby was alive."

"Oh my god, that's great!" Kay sobbed. "What did you do? Did you give it up for adoption?"

"No." Troy ran his hand across Talon's hair. "I signed for custody and got the baby."

"How is she?"

"No, it's not a girl. It was a boy." Troy smiled. "And he's good. What they thought was his heart failing was a problem with their equiptment. He's perfectly healthy and doing great."

"What did you and Gabriella name him?"

Suddenly, some grief came over Troy.

"Gabriella didn't get to name him... " A couple tears fled out of his eyes. "At first, we decided on Zane, but I knew she really wanted to name him Talen. But, she commited suicide only a while after he was born. Since I thought he was dead, I just kept it Zane, but when I was holding him, I knew Gabriella liked Talen, so I named him Talon Beau Bolton."

"Do you have any pictures? Can I talk to him?"

"Mom, the only things he can say are Dada, no, baba, and a couple more little things. He doesn't know how to carry on a conversation. How do you expect a fourteen month old baby to know how to talk to someone? I'll just send you some pictures.

Kay pulled her knees to her chest. "I've been in contact with Oliver and Maria Montez about a month after Gabriella died. They want to know a little more about why she ran away and stuff."

"They can fuck themselves, mom." Troy sighed. "They tortured her! She had bruises on her for three months after her dad beat her with a belt! And then she had to deal with their druggy asses- "

"They're clean, Troy. And the only reason he beat her with a belt was because his dad used to beat him that way, and he just overreacted. Troy, a lot of things she said she exaggerated about them. They didn't hate her. They didn't despise her. They really loved her a lot, and they are still crushed she is gone."

"Mom, don't you dare tell them that Talon's alive... " Troy stood up. "I don't want my son being around them. They tortured my baby girl. I'm raising Talon the way I want to raise him, and I want nothing but the best for him. They aren't the best for him. Why do you think I've stayed away for so long? I didn't want ANYONE I knew around him, because most people I know are all asses."

"They are grieving over their baby just like you grieved when you thought your baby was dead!"

"And YOU don't think I'm grieving still?"

"Over the baby? No. Over Gabriella? No."

"I loved Gabriella, mom, whether you think so or fucking not." Troy began to get nasty. "I was there, day in and day out for that girl. She was my pride and joy. I fell for her. I'm STILL grieving over her! I have vivid nightmares about her EVERY god damn night! Every waking moment, I cry and carry on about how sorry I am for getting her pregnant! I feel like I'm the reason she slit her throat! I feel like I'm the reason my son won't ever have his mom around! I'm the fucking reason for everything!" He sobbed loudly and sniffled.

Talon started to cry.

"I'm sorry Tal... " Troy turned around. "I didn't mean to yell and scare you." He sat down beside Talon and opened his arm up. "Come here."

Talon slowly climbed into Troy's arm and sobbed into Troy's chest. Troy rubbed his back a little and kissed the top of his head. "I'm sorry."

"Sweetheart, I know that you're juggling a lot right now. I just want you to know that I'm here for you, whenever you need me... Do you think you could come back to Ohio for a while?"

"I don't know." Troy sighed and wiped his tears away. "I can barely spend time with Talon because I've been so backed up with football and class until just today. And with all this Gabriella shit, I don't know if I have the patience to drive up there with Talon, because everything reminds me of Gabriella."

"Just for a while. Please?"

"I'll check into it." Troy rubbed his forehead. "I'll let you know next week. I'm on a month break right now and I'm trying to spend it with Talon."

"Why don't you come down for just a few days? Please? I really want to see you and Talon!"

"Alright! I'll get up there later on. I'm not staying any longer than like... Three days. I have Talon now."

"I'll tell your dad."

"Alright mom, bye."

"I LOVE YOU!"

"I love you too." He sighed. "Bye."

Troy set the phone beside him and groaned to himself, setting his face in his hands. His body jerked once as he let a couple tears out, but redeemed himself and wiped them away.

"Talon, we're going to Ohio." He kissed the top of his head. "The land of the assholes and the home of the drugheads."


	25. Bus Stop

(A/N: HI EVERYONE! I am really, really sorry! Truly, I am! I have no wireless Internet on my desktop, my laptop is loaded with viruses (for no particular reason) and my iPad can't post stories on fanfiction, which really sucks for me because I wrote them all on there. After thinking I lost all my stories, I found them all in my email a couple days later. I quickly typed them on my computer before they deleted themselves again, and now I have them all! :D So I am very glad to say that I have them all and they are ready to be uploaded! Also, I have just started my second semester as a freshman (made straight A's last semester, yippee!) and I am loaded with homework. So, please don't get mad if I don't post regularly. One more thing. I don't like using this desktop (cause it doesn't have Internet on it, but I can sometimes wire it to get Internet) so if it takes me a while to write a chapter, just bear with me. Thanks so much for waiting, and I love you all so much! You mean everything to me! I feel horrible for making you sit and wonder for so long, but I'm so glad you did. I am so, so grateful! ~Nikki)

Monday came, and Troy had pushed through many states to get to Ohio.

The road felt like the road to his deadly fate.

As it rained, Troy drove down the winding roads of his town, dodging cars and mud puddles. His foot remained on the break constantly, but he kept pushing on without stopping.

Troy turned down Anderson Street, slowly looking around at a deteriorating, old neighborhood and looked back at Talon, who was silently sleeping in the back.

He never wanted to expose Talon to drugs, violence, or anything bad,

Talon was about to get two tons of it.

Troy rubbed his forehead as two silent tears fell down his cheek. No, those tears were not for Talon. They were not for his parents. They were not for Gabriella.

They were because he didn't want to see the druggies and gangsters he grew up with.

"Thank god I never got into that shit." He whispered to himself "I would still be here in this fucked up neighborhood with these fucked up people and my fucked up family."

Nothing could draw him back to this neighborhood. He hated it. It was torture to even be there.

Talon whined a little and rubbed his eyes, opening them only slightly to look out the window.

"Hey Tal." Troy glanced back at Talon with a slight smile. "You up, bud?"

"Suddenly, he started wailing and sobbing uncontrollably. Troy groaned.

"What's going on? You hungry? Thirsty?"

Talon continued to wail like Troy wasn't there.

"Awh, Talon… " Troy shook his head and pulled on to another street.

Suddenly, Talon's cries were shushed.

The car stopped in the middle of a black-topped driveway. The house in front of him looked off, not because it was hidden behind a couple cracks in the foundation or the chipped paint on the side of the house that a little boy probably picked at, and not even because it looked lonely, since it sat away from all the other houses. It was odd because it had a smell of fresh wood burning.

Why would an abandoned house smell like fresh burning wood?

The wind cursed a silent scream, mocking a human, but at the same time, being so inhuman that he could not decide whether it was human or not.

A couple of leaves posed as tumbleweeds and chugged across the blacktop, gently passing Troy's truck as they made their journey through the "hood".

The whisper of the wind caressed Troy's cheek through his open truck window and chuckled silently, scattering away, like children in the park. A whisper fell upon his left ear, very quiet, but still clear enough for him to make out the words.

_The path of a leaf is unpredictable, like a teenager's footsteps and a teenager's actions._

His hands quivered as his fingernails dug into the steering wheel.

It was as if the wind was talking to him in a subscripting language.

He stared at the house as a peculiar feeling came over him. It was a place to familiar, so strangely familiar that he was raging to know what was so familiar about the house. He couldn't put his finger on it.

Thus, he pulled out of the driveway and continued on his way.

It would be a half hour until he arrived at his house. One thing lingered among him.

The voice.

The violently nature of the voice still sent shivers down his spine.

Troy glanced back at Talon, who was staring out the window, now perfectly content. He giggled a little and set his small hand on the window. Talon was known for his drastic mood swings, kind of like his mom.

But the only thing Gabriella was known for was being a nerd who wished desperately to be with the senior, Troy Bolton. Who saw her for herself? Only Troy.

Troy loved Gabriella. There was no doubt in that. Nobody around him saw it, but he felt it deeply in his heart. Even over a year after her death, he still felt butterflies thinking about her.

He searched the familiar driveway on the familiar roads around the familiar houses and the familiar neighborhood.

But, nothing.

He drove down a couple streets, turned a couple corners, and raised an eyebrow.

He knew he turned down the right street.

He turned down Hiking Street.

His house was on Dove Lane, and the only way to get to Dove Lane was to take a left at the end of Hiking Street.

He scratched his head.

He turned down Dove Lane.

Nothing.

A naked, brown, wormy earth stared back at him as he stopped his truck in the middle of the road.

Troy's eyes became wide.

"What the hell… " He shook his head, blinked a couples times, and looked at the spot in which his old house sat. "It's only been one god damn year that I've been gone… How much has changed?"

The smell in the air changed in a split second from the familiar smell of the hood to some foul, putrid, stomach-churning odor. It flew past Troy like a freight train. He covered his mouth, gagged, and rolled up his window up quickly.

Talon didn't seem to notice it.

Troy turned around toward Talon with wide eyes,

"Talon, can't you smell that?"

Talon shook his head.

"Jesus Christ, am I going crazy or something?"

He looked up at the neighborhood once again, noticing something even stranger than he had ever noticed.

There wasn't a drop of rain leaking from the single cloud floating along the crayon-colored blue horizon. The sidewalks were their normal colors, and the road was bone-dry, like it hadn't rained in years. But what was even weirder that on the side of the road, there was a blue sign with white reflectors on each of its squared sides. There was a picture of a very basic bus.

That was his old bus stop.

Even his name remained on the sign from when he was in fifth grade and thought it was cool to claim the sign as his own.

The sign stood lonely, drug into the earth with superior forces that Troy could not imagine. It was rusted and had been through two decades of hell, but still stood. It was silent, but still bursted with many words that filled Troy's head with memories.

Many, many memories…

And without any other thoughts, he sped out of there like a rocket.


	26. Mommy Dearest

Troy waited patiently outside his car, watching as the birds soared overhead. They squealed and squawked like the birds of Ohio, the Blue Jays, the Redbirds, the Crows, Geese, Herons, and many, many more beautiful birds that he had grown up with. It was weird, because for over a year, he was used to seeing Seagulls and Pelicans and Mockingbirds, and now, it was like seeing long lost friends. He had missed the disgusting ponds and creeks that ran through the middle of his druggy town, the acid rain that poured down and melted away the sides of the plastic house siding, the old, rusty trains that would break away from each other and begin to roll down the tracks, occasionally hitting a car or two, and he even missed the one thing that made his life complete.

His high school.

He missed the annoying bells that signaled the next boring class, he missed the pungent smell of the rotten lunch being fakely sautéed over a greasy fire, and he even missed the smell of the green football field which he grew up on and his life revolved around.

Oh god, how he missed the football field.

The crowds rooted for him as he ran onto the field, holding his helmet up in his right hand and the other hand held up in a fist as he screamed his team's name. Everyone said it after him, all smiles and with such spirit that the other team envied the other team.

That was what he loved.

That made him pumped to go to the high school.

But at the same time, he really didn't want to go back.

He didn't want to see the new seniors whom he used to pick on, and the little juniors and sophomores and freshmen…

He hated the thought.

A car pulled up beside his truck, and a short, skinny middle aged woman stepped out. She had on her khakis and a red shirt, obviously signifying she had just gotten off work.

"Troy?" She said, shutting her car door.

"Mom?" He smiled a little. "You look as young as ever."

"And you look like hell." She held her arms out. "I need a big, big hug from you."

"Gladly." He sighed. "I need a hug from someone, anyone… "

"She held her arms out as Troy filled them, giving her a large, but passionate hug that he had missed dearly from his mom.

He felt a little safer once again.

"I'm so, so sorry about everything sweetheart… Really, I am."

"Why are you so sorry? You didn't cause it. It was me. I should have never offered myself to her. This would have never happened if it weren't for me. She would still be at home, she would still have her life, and she would be a normal sophomore girl- "

"You gave her the best thing anyone could ever give someone else. You gave her her first kiss, you offered her love, and you even gave her a child. I know for a fact that she cared very much for you, and I'm so sorry her life was cut short."

Tears started forming in Troy's eyes.

"Mom, don't be sorry- "

"I am! I feel horrible for her! The stress in her life should have never been there! She shouldn't have to decide major decisions at her age! That poor girl didn't deserve anything that came her way."

"Can we please not have this discussion here?" He wiped his eyes as he pulled away from Kay. "I'm going to start bawling if you don't stop."

"Alright, I'll stop." She smiled a little at him. "So, can I meet my grandson?"

"Yeah… " He said, grabbing her hand. He led her towards his truck. "I'm giving you a fair warning. He may be cranky. I just woke him up not even five minutes ago."

Troy opened the back seat of his truck and pulled Talon out before he had time to complain.

Talon sat on Troy's hip, idle, staring off into space. Suddenly, be bursted out crying, not even giving Troy a chance to say anything.

"Awh, Talon… " Troy grasped Talon's body into a hug and kissed the top of his head. "Come on now, you're a big boy, aren't you?"

Talon's cries morphed into screams.

"Here baby, let grandma take care of those cries… " She held her hands out.

"You sure?" Troy raised an eyebrow."

"I had a little boy once. I know what to do."

"Then go right ahead." Troy handed Talon to his mom.

"Awh, look at him, he looks just like you, Troy! What was his name again?"

"Talon. Talon Beau Bolton."

"He's so beautiful!" A couple tears welled in Kay's eyes. "I can't believe I have a grandson… And I'm only 45… "

"Well, nature took its sour course… And Gabriella got pregnant. Ruined my reputation at school forever. Nobody really liked me after that. The football team hated me, girls hated me, and even the teachers resented me. But I'm glad I got my little man. He was worth losing my reputation over. I would lose my reputation a million more times for him."

"How old is he?"

"14 months."

"And he's so chubby!" Kay smiled. "He's going to be a chubby little boy, isn't he?"

"MY kid won't be chubby. He's going to be a football junkie like his daddy, right Tal?"

Talon giggled a little, as if he had never cried,

"Brat." Troy ruffled Talon's hair.

"Do you want to get home?" Kay said, looking up. "It looks like it's about to rain… "

Troy looked up at the light blue sky. To the east, there were dark, malign clouds rolling towards them.

And then, something hit Troy like a fast bowling ball. He got wide eyed.

"Is that ice cream shop still open downtown?" How about the park? Mall? Biking course? Something?" He started towards his truck.

"It's going to rain, Troy!" She followed him.

"Meet me back here at three, okay?"

"I thought we were going home- "

"I have to do something really, really important. I'll get his bag and his car seat."

"Troy quickly pulled Talon's car seat out and his bag, throwing them in his mom's car. He took Talon from her, gave him a quick kiss, and strapped him into the car seat.

"I'll be back, I promise!" He handed her a 50 dollar bill. "Take him somewhere fun! I'll call you on my way back!"

And then, he sped off towards the dark clouds.


	27. Star Of The School

He arrived.

Troy stopped at the front door of the main building, staring at it like it was the gateway to hell. His body quivered a little, and he became nervous because suddenly, it was like good memories mixed with bad ones. The life that he thought was perfect, the girls, the friends, the team, the fame, was all flipped in one day.

And this was the place he found out that his life would change forever.

He pushed his hand forward, setting it on the handle. He waited a moment and listened to the rustling of the leaves as they delicately caressed the pavement and waited to be stepped on by the unpredictable steps of teenagers.

_Just like a teenager's life was unpredictable._

He looked around, spotting the large oak tree which the leaves were now a sparkling gold. It hung oddly, as an old man about to pass on and quirked a smile at Troy as if to say "welcome back".

Without another thought, he slowly cracked the door open and peeked inside.

No human body stirred through the halls.

He slowly slipped inside the door and shut it very delicately behind him.

He stood inside the halls he used to walk, which he used to rule. They were freshly painted blue and red, as his colors used to be. The ceiling was still as low as ever, hanging at about ten feet high.

It was still the same.

He shoved his hands in his pockets and made his way down the hallway, admiring the newspaper articles from last year about the graduating seniors. He admired the many trophies and ribbons in the trophy case, almost all which he had been a part of. The largest trophy stood in the middle. It was eight feet high and decorated in blue and red sparkling paint. It shimmered like the sun on a bright summer day, and stood out among the other bland trophies.

He felt proud of himself for the first time in fourteen months.

The soft patter of footsteps rang through his ears and he turned around quickly.

"Oh god, you scared me a little… " He laughed a little.

The principal stood with her arms folded. She was fairly young, hadn't seen her thirtieth year, and was a little hot to Troy. "What are you doing out of class?"

"I graduated last year. I'm in college now. Don't you remember me? Troy Bolton?"

The principal automatically cracked a smile. "Oh yeah, I remember. QB and captain of the football team, most popular guy in school, and I remember that girls used to mob you all the time." She chuckled. "So how is life treating you so far?"

"Pretty good. I've been really busy lately."

"Oh." She looked down the hallway. "Did you hear about the girl who committed suicide?"

Troy felt a lightning bolt strike him. His face began to turn pale.

"Gabriella Montez?" He asked quietly."

"That girl was such a good student. It was a shame. The staff said she was pregnant and she was just too stressed. Poor girl."

Troy swallowed hard. "That was my girlfriend… "

A weird expression came across her face. "How did you two end up together? You were the star athlete and the direct contact of all the girls, and she was an outlier who was very smart and nobody really liked."

"It just… Happened… "

"Was that your baby?"

He nodded.

She gasped. "I am so sorry! That must have been terrible- "

"No, my son is okay. She gave birth to him before she committed suicide."

"I am still very sorry about Gabriella… "

An alarm rang on her watch and she sighed.

"I have to go. I'm sorry for leaving in mid-conversation, but there's a board meeting today. I wish you luck with college! Bye!"

And she was gone.

He found himself wandering through the empty halls.

…..

He located himself again in Building 4.

All by himself, he stood in the middle of the gym, watching as all the lights turned on one by one.

He walked into the middle of the gym and thought good memories.

And those memories flew away when suddenly he heard a familiar voice.

"Troy?"

He whipped around.

There stood a skinny, hot blonde girl.

Ally.

"Ally?"

She sighed.

"I'm just going to my next class."

She walked past him.

He grabbed her arm.

"Wait."

"What?"

He stood holding her arm, looking for a question to pull out of thin air. But he could not find one.

"Nothing, just- "

"I heard you have a baby." She said quietly.

Silence came upon both of them.

They stared into each other's eyes.

Her body was tantalizing…

"Yeah, I have a baby." He let go of her arm.

"Do you love her?"

"My baby? No, he's a boy."

"No, Gabriella."

Troy bit his lip. "I love her, but I can never tell her ever again."

"Why?"

"She's dead, Ally."

Ally's face changed drastically.

"Oh my god, how?"

"She committed suicide… " He ran his fingers through his hair and squeezed it as he tried keeping his mind straight.

"That's terrible! I'm so sorry!" She sobbed as a couple tears fell down her cheeks. "I can't believe the things I did to her! I told everyone you and her were together and that you had her baby. I'm so sorry!"

"One word can affect a million nerves with Gabriella." He looked directly into her eyes. "She was a really good person. She would have been a great mom to our son, but she never got to meet him… "

"I'm so sorry for you and your son… "

He nodded.

She quickly started walking towards the exit. "I'm sorry, I have to go- "

Troy grabbed her arm and pulled her towards him. He stared directly into her eyes and she stared back.

He kissed her.

He kissed her hard.

It felt good to finally get a real, true kiss after 14 months of not getting one from a girl at all.

She pulled back, shocked, and stumbled backwards a little.

"Oh my god, I'm so sorry… I forgot we weren't together for a minute- "

She bolted out of the gym as fast as she could, tears flying down her cheeks.

And he watched as another girl ran out of his life.


	28. Apex

Earth was for the living.

Heaven and hell were for the dead.

Apex was for the dead who could not move on or who did not want to go to heaven.

It was in between life and death, and was among the clouds which humans gazed upon.

Gabriella was in Apex.

Her warm breath filled the cold room as she woke from vivid nightmares of the murders and the murderers she saw in her friends. Goosebumps began to form on her cold skin.

She walked outside into the bright clouds.

Birds flew across Apex. Dogs chased squirrels in Apex. Fish swam in glistening ponds in Apex.

People did what they wanted in Apex.

Every wish was granted in Apex.

_Other than to be alive._

Everyone on Gabriella's side of Apex had been murdered (A/N: Remember this sentence! I will refer to it in the future!)

She pulled up her gown and walked down the steps, greeting the many people she cared about.

Ruthie, her best friend in Apex, pulled up on her black mare, Midnight. "You comin' horse ridin'?"

Ruthie was murdered in a hotel at a skiing resort two years ago. She was 16 and from Texas.

Gabriella smiled at her and walked up to Midnight, stroking her snout. "Not today. I have a couple things to do."

"Your loss!" She laughed and rode off into the trails.

She passed Joe's house, her favorite neighbor.

"Hi Joey! How's the flowers doing today?"

He turned around and waved at her. "Hello miss Gabriella! They're perfect as can be!

Joe had been murdered back in 2000. He was 76.

"Hey, tell Marsha I said I still want that date with her!" Joe yelled to Gabriella.

"Will do, Joey!"

As she strolled further down the street, little Evan ran out from behind his house towards her.

"Gabriella! Gabriella! Are we going to see Colt and Clyde and Ella today?"

"I am, but you're not!" She giggled and grabbed him in her arms, giving him a big kiss on the cheek. "How are you today?"

"I'm doing well!"

Evan was a four year old little boy from her Pennsylvania whose father drowned him in a bathtub.

"I want to see them!" He whined.

"I'll take you riding on Colt later, okay?"

"Alright. I guess."

He crossed his arms as he watched her walk off towards the front of Apex.

Gabriella arrived at her favorite place in the world.

Her own personal zoo.

In Apex, you can have anything you want.

She had every animal in existence, even dinosaurs.

And she loved them all. They were all tame and very docile, even the large T-Rex with huge teeth.

She loved them all very dearly.

As she walked inside, chirps, roars, gurgles, and glass-shattering screeches from the dinosaurs greeted her.

She went through and pet every single one before going back to her stables.

These were her most dear animals.

The stables were her and Ruthie's, but Ruthie owned most of the horses there.

She grabbed a horse bucket and filled it with horse feed and filled the other with dog food.

Quickly, she rushed into her stable, where Colt woke from his sleep and whinnied happily at her.

"Hi Coltie!" She pet his mane and poured food in his bowl.

Colt was a Paint horse, with beautiful black and white spots covering his body.

She slid open another stall door which lead to her dogs.

Clyde and Ella.

A beautiful Saint Bernard approached her, wiggling his butt at her.

This was Clyde.

Ella was a large Newfoundland, covered in Landseer spots.

She poured all of their food into a large bowl, and watched as both dog gobbled their food down quickly.

And when they were all done eating, she mounted Colt, and rode off into Apex with her two dogs running behind her.


	29. Earth Beneath Her Fingers

She arrived at the gate.

It was about 100 feet tall and connected to an invisible fence that surrounded Apex. The gate was covered in 24k indestructible gold that glistened when the sun hit it. It sparkled like the water on hot summer days.

She approached the front desk on Colton and stopped, looking at the lady.

"HI Marsha, you beeped me."

"I know." She said, handing up a white tag to her.

Gabriella held what very few Apexians held.

It was like a golden ticket, but it was white.

"Are you serious?"

Marsha nodded. "He requested you."

"There is no way he requested me. No way."

"He did." She said.

Gabriella jumped off her horse, shivering with fear.

"Don't be scared. He won't hurt you."

Gabriella slowly walked towards the large gate, looking up at it and suddenly getting dizzy. It suddenly jolted open, and creaked as its doors slowly opened.

"Good luck."

The gates closed behind her.

She looked at the gates between life, heaven, and hell.

People stood on the life cloud, confused, and sobbing and crying because their life was over. They didn't want to die.

They didn't want to accept it.

Gabriella couldn't watch their pain and suffering.

There was a light beaming down in front of the heaven gate, which she walked towards.

The gate opened, and a dark room waited for her to enter.

She cautiously walked inside.

"I have summoned you here."

Gabriella sobbed. "Why?"

A door opened in front of her. "Go."

She obeyed, too scared to stay any longer.

She was sucked in.

She was falling.

Falling, falling, faster and harder…

She hit something.

Her fingers curled, and water poured onto her. Soft, green grass rested beneath her hands.

Earth.

She stood up.

She was amazed.

"Oh my god, I'm alive!" She screamed. "HEY, I'M ALIVE!" She screamed at a man who was walking down the street.

The person continued on without even noticing her.

"Huh?" She started panting. "Hello?"

Nothing.

She screamed.

Nobody heard.

She saw Troy's truck.

She ran towards it.

It stopped in a driveway, and she could see his face through the front window.

"ASSHOLE!" She screamed at him and stomped towards his car door.

He continued to stare.

She approached the truck, the wind following her. The wind stirred up a couple leaves as they passed in front of her.

She stood by his door, staring in.

His fingernails dug into the steering wheel.

She watched him shiver as her cold breath stirred up more wind.

She touched his face. "Troy… " She said silently as tears poured down her face.

Nothing.

More tears rolled down her face.

"TROY!" She screamed.

No response. All she could see was his slow reaction to the wind.

She tried again. "TROY!" Her screams were nothing but whispers to Troy.

She whispered something in his ear as the rain poured down over her angelic and invisible body.

"I love you… " She ran her fingers through his hair.

She withdrew and walked towards the back.

She peered in at her son, who peered back at her.

She had never looked upon her baby, nor ever knew if he had really survived.

Tears fell from her eyes as she slowly set her hand upon the window. A smile cracked from the corner of her mouth.

He giggled and set his hand on the window beside hers.

Her blood began to boil.

She took her hand off the window.

She screeched as she bolted down the road, a line of red and orange fire following behind her.

She turned down Dove and looked upon the neighborhood.

She destroyed everything. She bashed in walls, pulled up gutters, sliced the street, tore up roofs, broke windows, flipped over sidewalk panels, and set fire to the debris.

She watched as the debris burned, fire in her young eyes, wondering why she had to die.

Why she had to die so young.

Why she had no love while she was alive.

Why she never got to meet her son.

Why she never found Troy's heart.

She screamed, feeling like a god, like a dictator, an anarchist…

And suddenly, the fire burned out. On the debris, and her eyes.

The wind and water washed the ashes away.

She stood in the middle of the road, letting the rain pour down her slender body, letting it kill everything in her body, washing away every inch of hope she kept within her. She let it trickle down her body, down her face, down her neck, down her chest, her stomach, let legs, her feet…

She stood there as Troy pulled up.

His face showed nothing but shock as she looked back to the brown earth left from her rage.

"Fucked up, aren't I?" She said to him. "Yeah, just a fucking Apexian trying to find some peace and love in this screwed up society."

Her calling came.

She cleared the sky with a wave of her hand, watching as the blue sky re-emerged from the dark clouds. She dried all the water with a swipe, rebuilt the neighborhood, and walked away.

She walked past Troy.

She looked at him for a second, sobbing, and leaned as she planted a kiss on his cheek.

As she pulled back, he rolled up the window and gagged.

"Asshole."


	30. Gabriella's Parents

Troy sat quietly on his armchair in his old bedroom.

It was like an old memory was finally beginning to come alive.

He remembered the last time he was in the room.

He was with Gabriella.

And she was the most beautiful she had ever been since he first saw her.

She was seven months pregnant with Talon, had the appetite of a horse, and always had something in her mouth, whether it was good or the end of the pen, or even Troy's lips.

But, he was finally beginning to fall deeply in love with her.

He loved her and their baby more than anything on the planet, more than his high school fame, more than his friends, the girls, the mobs, his parents…

More than _anything._

And he made sure she knew it.

He would grab her waist and spin her around, peck her on the lips and say "I love you, Gabs" or "You're beautiful, baby girl".

It killed him that the pain from her thinking that he was just putting on an act for her committed to her suicide.

And it also killed him that he had just kissed his ex.

He had loved Ally for so long, and then, just one day crushed it all.

She would do anything to get him, she would expose her virgin body right to his face, let him ride her hard. Anything. She would go against God's word to get him back.

She was going to let him be her first, even though she would be shunned from her Catholic church forever.

Chastity would be gone.

Virginity would be gone.

Innocence would be gone.

But, she would risk it all to keep Troy.

And Troy suddenly had a little respect for her.

He knew she loved him, and still did.

A stinging feeling came across his cheek, and confused, he held it as the pain increased.

He looked around, shocked, as the feeling deepened.

His mom opened the door "Sweetheart, are you coming downstairs?"

He looked over at her. "Uh, yeah… " He stood up. "Talon's sleeping on the bed. Just be quiet."

Troy started down the stairs with his mom and stopped on the second to last step.

He stared at his dad, who happily chatted with someone…

Someone Troy had deep hatred for.

His blood began to boil.

"What the hell… "

Kay looked up at him. "Troy, it's time that you talk to them… "

"No, they killed my Gabi, my baby girl- "

"No they didn't She killed herself, Troy." Kay grabbed his hand.

"She pulled him off the stairs.

Troy stared at the man and woman now standing in front of him.

The man held his hand out. "I'm sorry we got off to a bad start. I'm Oliver Montez, and this is my wife, Maria."

Troy stared at the man.

Troy slowly shook the man's hand. "Troy Bolton. You're Gabriella's parents."

"And you're Gabriella's boyfriend, the guy I found in her bedroom."

"Yeah that's me." He said. "What do you have to say about that? That I'm a man whore, an ass, a little girl fucker, a screwed up son-of-a-bitch?"

"Troy Bolton! I don't want to hear that out of your mouth again!" She smacked his arm.

"I'm twenty years old, mom. I can say whatever I want."

"Look, we're not here to fight. We wanted to meet the guy that Gabriella fell so dearly in love with that she felt she had to run away."

"And you never looked for her- "

"We spent months searching for her!" Maria sobbed.

"Troy, they are our guests, whether you like it or not! Be a little nicer!"

Kay made Troy sit on the couch. Maria and Oliver sat in front of him.

"Ask questions. I'll make him answer." Kay looked at Maria and Oliver.

And with tons of regret, he was forced to tell them the entire story, or they threatened to press charges on kidnapping their daughter.

He told them everything, and every detail of the time they had been together and when they were having sex at her house.

He told them about how she told him she was pregnant.

"I was just sitting there in Spanish, and I needed to talk to her about a couple things and to tell her that the sex had to stop… When the teacher said to find a partner, I looked over at Gabriella. I can still remember exactly how she looked, what she was wearing, and what she said… She was wearing this black hoodie and her hood was up. Her jeans were very tight, and she had a couple holes in them. She wore her suede boots. She was staring directly at the desk and her hands were in her pockets. So, I got up and went over to her to talk to her. As soon as I got there, I sat diagonal from her behind her. I tried to ask her a couple things, and she just ignored me. Then, I figured out what was going on. I asked her if she was pregnant, and she nodded. My entire body just went numb. I didn't know anything about babies or kids, because I never liked kids. I was really scared, but I stayed strong as she cried. I took her out of the classroom, and I comforted her and told her it was okay and we would make it through."

It killed him to watch her parents cry. But in another sense, it felt good to watch the people who abused her cry over her.

He continued to tell them everything. He didn't want to, but as was said earlier, he was forced.

And at the end of his speech, everyone was in tears and crying, even Troy, who was hysterical.

Talon walked downstairs with a long face. He started sobbing, crying, and called out "dada" a couple times.

"Talon, what are you doing up?" Troy tried to calm himself down as he got up and started towards Talon. "How did you get downstairs without any help? Don't do that again… "

Troy scooped Talon into his arms as he let Talon cry, obviously from a nightmare, and as Troy shushed him, Talon cried out with "mama" a couple times, reaching his arm out, grasping air, as tears rolled down his cheeks like he had just been hurt very badly.

But of course, he had a nightmare. What else would make Talon cry helplessly?

But suddenly, one last sob fled his mouth, and he was done.

Troy smiled a little through her teary face and kissed the side of his head. "See, you're okay."

"Is this the baby you were talking about?" Maria said as her and Oliver walked up to Troy. "Is this Gabriella's baby?"

Troy looked down at Talon and sobbed. Quietly, he handed Talon to them, feeling a little bad about what he had just said about Gabriella.

"Hi Talon… " Maria sobbed. "He looks nothing like Gabriella. Oliver, isn't he just something else? The only thing left of our daughter lies right here, in this little boy."

Oliver and Maria both cried like babies.

Troy's heart began to break even more, watching as they began to bond with their grandson.

His heart would never mend correctly.


	31. Empty House

Troy couldn't bear to see Gabriella's parents with Talon. But deep in his heart, he knew it was the right thing to do.

He grasped her memory within him as he drove down the road, tears running down his cheeks.

He would kill himself if it wasn't for Talon.

He would purposefully drive off the road into a ditch and if the job wasn't done by then, he would cover himself with brown earth and smother himself to death.

He hated living he life he was living.

He would just say "fuck it" to life if it wasn't for Talon.

He shivered as a cold burst of air leaked through his window. He rolled it up.

He couldn't take the sorrow anymore.

He found a driveway and pulled into it.

His eyes leaked runny tears, his body leaked suffering, and his heart leaked pain.

He cried for Gabriella; he cried for his baby girl.

He cried for mercy to come and take his body to heaven with her. (A/N: He knows nothing about Aoex. xD)

The memory of Gabriella shot through Troy's head many times, how she used to be so beautiful and had a glow that nobody else saw but Troy. She was this goddess of something Troy couldn't explain, something that was so foreign he found it hard to breathe when he gazed upon her gorgeous body. He didn't care how much everyone at the high school used to hate her. He didn't care that everyone despised her smart ways, and how she would innocently raise her hand in class and be called devilish names by punks and smart-asses. He didn't care anymore.

Gabriella, his baby girl, was gone forever in a world he knew nothing of.

A creaking noise startled Troy enough to look up.

He saw that house, that strangely familiar house staring back at him. The one with the chipped paint and the eerie feeling. He wiped his tears.

"I'm not afraid of you." He said. "I'm not just a little boy who is frightened of everything he sees."

Another creaking noise made Troy jump.

He slammed his car door behind him as he started approaching the house. Its quirky structure made Troy grin a little. "You think you're scaring me?"

Another creak.

He approached the steps and looked down at them. They were old and worn, with cracks and unstable pieces of wood. They had been stepped on by many people for many years. They had seen many days and better days.

He set his shaky foot on the first step.

A large creak arose from it.

His other foot found the other step.

Another creak.

The next step.

No creaks.

As he stepped on to the porch, he looked at the eerie house in a weird way.

The fresh paint was cracked, as if paint could not hide the house's natural blemishes. The door smiled at him, as if welcoming him inside the ungodly house.

He approached the door and knocked.

No footsteps were heart inside the house.

"Hello?" He yelled from outside.

He knocked again, this time, the door opened willingly by itself.

He peered inside.

The house was empty, with cracked walls and ceilings and wooden, hard floors. Nothing but dust and must resided in the house, no furniture, no people, no animals, nothing. There was a residual cold to the house, like it had been kept an iceberg for the dead.

He entered the house, not knowing what was so strangely familiar.

He stepped upon the hard floor, and it creaked weirdly.

That was the creaking noise he heard in his car.

He stood there, silent, listening for other noises.

He felt a cold grasp to his shoulder.

A whisper floated around him, some chuckles, and he turned quickly as a white must slowly dissipated.

He turned back.

And his scream echoed through the neighborhood.


	32. Dusty Trail Of Tears

Colt rode through the town like a misty horse not being able to stop. His mane gracefully fluttered in the wind as the two dogs followed on his tail.

Gabriella stopped him in front of the gate.

"I need to talk to him." She said to Marsha.

Marsha looked up at her from the rim of her glasses. "And why is that?"

"I need to know why I'm not seen down on Earth. Many people see ghosts. Why can't they see me or hear me?"

"Trust me, they can hear and feel you, but they may not see you. They won't be able to see you unless you go to hell with Satan."

Gabriella shook her head. "I need to see Troy and my son! Please! Just one day!"

"I'm sorry; I can't let you go in there." Marsha continued jotting things down on a piece of notebook paper. "His orders.

"Tell him it is urgent!"

"I can't do that!"

Gabriella pulled her horse around. "Fine." She said.

She was about to do something in Apex that nobody had ever attempted, other than a lunatic who wanted justice in his life.

She turned around, fire blazing in her eyes.

She kicked the side of Colt as hard as she could. He drew up, whinnied loudly, and darted directly towards the gate.

Gabriella's heart began pumping as she rammed right through the desk, and then right through the gate.

And suddenly, everything went black.

…..

She woke up in a dark room.

Her body was chilled; it felt the pain.

"Wait, I feel pain… "

She laughed joyously. "IT WORKED!"

Her beeper beeped. "You have 12 hours, miss Montez. Be back here at 6 AM, or I will damn you to hell instantly. Marsha's voice came over.

Gabriella ran through the door and down the street with light speed and to Troy's house.

She ran upstairs, laughing with joy, and went through his bedroom door.

There he was, sitting in the armchair.

She smiled big and walked past Troy to Talon, petting his hair as she sat on the bed. Tears came to her eyes as she stared at her baby, the one thing she loved and wanted so badly to be with.

She looked over at Troy.

She knew exactly what he was thinking.

She got up and leaned towards him.

She screamed two inches away from his face.

Then, she slapped him across the cheek as hard as she possibly could.

She ran downstairs.

She saw her parents chatting with Jack easily.

"YOU ASSES!" She screamed at her parents. "WHAT THE HELL IS WRONG WITH YOU?"

She watched as both Troy and Kay made their way downstairs.

She crossed her arms as she stood right in front of Troy.

Gabriella watched them closely as he refused to talk to them.

"No, no, they killed my Gabi, my baby girl!" He said.

Gabriella rolled her eyes. "Your baby girl is Ally, not me."

She watched as her dad and Troy shook hands.

She almost puked on the floor.

They went into the living room.

Gabriella stood silently by the wall in front of the living room, waiting for Troy to kill someone.

She wanted to see him burst into anger and lunge forward with a knife in his hand.

She wanted to see him slash their bodies up. But, instead, he stood there and cried.

He told the story about how she died, and how much he loved her, and about their son.

Everyone was in tears.

Even Gabriella.

She sobbed and covered her mouth, fighting o tell him that she was okay, to tell him that she loved him and their son immensely, and to tell him about how she actually died.

Why she died.

She bursted into hysterical crying as he finished his story, and she wailed for him, cried for his broken heart, and so desperately wanted to tell him how much she missed and loved him.

But she would never get to do that.

_Because she was dead._

She screamed a deathly scream to him, wanting him to stop the nonsense and for him to grab her in his arms and tell her how everything would be okay.

But nothing happened.

She heard a little crying behind her, and turned as Troy walked directly through her.

She sobbed as she watched Troy cradle Talon in his arms, hushing his cries.

But, he didn't stop.

She stood in front of him, letting more invisible tears roll down her invisible face.

"Baby, mommy's right here… " She sobbed.

"Mama!" He screamed.

She hushed him and held her hand out to his awaiting hand and gently grabbed it. She would feel his soft baby skin.

It was the first thing she had actually physically felt in 14 long months.

"Listen to me… " She sobbed. "Mommy loves you so much, and it kills me to be away from you every day. It breaks my heart… "

He cried even harder. "Mama… "

"I want you to know that I'll always be here for you, and I'll never let you go, no matter what happens. I'll be watching over you forever."

"Mama… "

She kissed his hand and ran a finger through his blonde hair. "You're so beautiful, baby boy… You look just like your daddy." She giggled a little through her teary voice. "Now you stop crying. You be strong for your daddy. I know he loves you. You'll get him through this, okay?"

His sobs were hushed, but he let one stray one out, and then stopped.

Gabriella stood up and kissed the top of his head. "I love you."

And Gabriella left a dusty trail of tears as she exited the house.


	33. Visibility

She sat on the steps of the nasty old house that was the portal between Earth and Apex.

It creaked like crazy and reeked of old, moldy furniture.

But, there was no furniture there.

Just old floors, walls, and ceilings, and a set of stairs.

Nothing else.

She sighed as she began to walk across the floor. Although she was weightless, it creaked beneath her like she was two tons.

Her mood felt heavy.

She dragged herself across the floor until she heard the running engine of a car.

It turned off.

She crossed her arms and stepped across the floor a couple more times.

She heard a voice.

She stepped again.

Creaks flooded her ears. Not her own creaks, but other, unnatural creaks.

She felt a tear roll down her cheek.

Gabriella was _scared._

What ghost was _scared_ of humans?

Of what could she possibly be scared of?

A murderer, a rapist?

No.

A ghost?

_She was one._

Nobody could see her, so she stood and waited.

A voice was followed by the door opening.

Troy.

"How the hell did you get here?" She said, raising an eyebrow.

He walked upon the creaking floors, right past her, and she stood behind him.

Out of curiosity, she said his name.

"Troy? She tried to grab his shoulder.

He froze.

She felt his shoulder tense under her hand.

Gabriella let go of his shoulder.

Finally, her screams of help were heard.

"TROY!" She screamed as loudly as she possibly could. In her world, the scream rumbled the house, but to Troy, it was just a whisper.

He turned.

He stared into her.

She quickly ran around to the front of him, scared that he had spotted her…

He turned back.

He backed up as a scream left his mouth. His eyes were wide, his mouth was wide open, and he hit the wall with a thud. His breathing increased and he was visibly shaking.

"Troy?" She walked towards him.

"GET THE HELL AWAY!" He yelled.

What she didn't know was that all he could see was a white silhouette of her body.

"Troy!" She sobbed and broke down. "You can hear me?"

"Go away!"

She got closer and touched his chest.

She could feel him shaking so hard that he could barely speak.

"It's Gabriella!" She cried out, trying to get through to him.

In his eyes, her features became clearer. The white mist was morphing into someone he knew…

"TROY!" She screamed directly into his face.

Troy's eyes got wide. "Gabriella?"

"Troy? Can you hear me?" She said, a little hope sparked in her body.

Her body became fully visible.

She stood there, looking like her normal self. She was dressed in her holey jeans and her favorite purple and black Aeropostale t-shirt that fit her just perfectly and hugged her torso in a sexy way. Her hair was brown and shoulder-length and straight, and her makeup was just like it was before she died. She still had on her sandals for the summer.

She looked like she did the day before she died, after she had Talon, but even skinnier as if she was never pregnant.

Her skinny, petite little self.

And she stared at Troy.

He had on his jeans and his grey and blue American Eagle shirt which he loved and wore at least twice or three times a week. His black sneakers fit his feet just right and his hair was still straight, short, and medium brown. His blue eyes still cut their way through her body.

His breathing increased even more. "Yeah, I can hear you!" He reached his hand out. "GABRIELLA!" He screamed.

"TROY!" She screamed back and grabbed his hand.

Electricity flowed through their hands and she could actually feel his hand, his skin, and his soft touch.

He could feel hers.

It was like she was a real person.

"Oh my god, Gabi!" He sobbed. "Is that really you? This is a dream, isn't it?"

"No, it's not!" She looked around. "I don't know how this happened! Thirty seconds ago, I was at your house, and now I'm standing in front of you, completely visible.

He touched her face, traced his finger along her cheek, and down her arm, entwining his fingers with hers.

"You didn't die, did you? You've been alive this entire time- "

"No, I _am_ really dead! I don't know why this happened, but can you really see me?"

"Plain as day!" He looked into her eyes. "I don't care how this happened! I need you!"

Troy quickly pulled Gabriella into his arms.

She bursted into tears quickly and let herself melt within Troy, letting him hold her lost body, letting him cherish what he had not had in 14 months.

"Oh my god, baby… " He held the back of her head with his hand and kissed the top of her head.

"I missed you so much… " She sobbed.

"So did I… " He sighed and rocked her back and forth.

"I love you so much… " She looked up at him.

He leaned down and kissed her lips…

That kiss felt like no kiss he had ever felt before. It was passionate and so loving, it made them both melt.

He pulled back and ran his hand across her head, a couple tears falling from his eyes.

"Stay, please… " He kissed her running tears away.

"I don't know how long it will be until I go invisible again." She stroked his chest with her hand. "Are you going to be okay without me?"

"No, I want you to stay- "

"Make love to me." She looked back up at him with innocence in her eyes.

"What? Gabi, I just got you back- "

"Come on." She pulled away from him. "This is our last chance to be together. Please… "

He ran his hand across her side, thinking about them for a moment.

He then grabbed both her sides and gently lowered her to the floor.

And love grasped itself within their bodies.

…..

Troy and Gabriella lie side by side on the cold, hard wood floor. Both were out of breath.

Troy had his arms protectively wrapped around Gabriella's shivering, bare body. She curled around him and closed her eyes, burying her head into his chest.

"I love you… " She said. "I've been almost two years… "

"Since you had sex? Me too." He stroked her hair.

"I'm cold… " She nuzzled into his neck.

"Here… " He pulled her closer, letting her body push against her. She curled up in a ball.

He looked over at her. "Is there really a heaven?"

She smiled. "There's a heaven and there's a hell, and then there's a place called Apex."

"Apex?" He raised an eyebrow. "What's an Apex."

"Apex means the top of something in Latin. Apex is the place where freshly dead people go. If someone doesn't want to move on, they stay at Apex. You get anything you want in Apex, other than to be alive."

"Anything?"

"Anything. I have a zoo all to myself and my best friend and I share a huge stable together. I have a horse named Colt and two dogs named Clyde and Ella. Big dogs. If you want to move on, you either go to heaven or hell, depending on what your life was based on. In both heaven and hell, at some point, you are reborn into another person. You basically get a second chance, like reincarnation."

"Oh." Troy said. "Do you get any older there?"

"You keep aging, but you never die. And you always look the same unless you go to Earth, like me. I'm sixteen. Do I look sixteen?"

"Yeah, you do look a little older." Troy kissed her forehead. "Do you like Apex?"

"It's hell without you and our baby there."

He rubbed her back a little "Would I go to Apex if I died?"

She nodded.

"Should I kill myself to be with you?"

"No… You should live your life. You don't deserve to die… " She stroked his hair. "I don't know if I can live without you… " He ran his hand across her bare side, staring into her eyes. "Just look at you. You're beautiful, sexy, and gorgeous. I love you."

"I love you too… " She kissed his lips a couple times.

Their love would never break.


	34. Shining Knives And Bloody Razor Blades

Troy sat on the stairs, holding Gabriella in his arms as he held onto the fact that she wouldn't be there forever.

She looked out the window and sighed, waiting for the moment her body would be whisked back into Apex.

She slid her hand up the back of his shirt and rubbed his back a little. He smiled at her and kissed the top of her head. "I love you, Gabi."

"I love you too." She rested her head on his shoulder and sighed. "I'm scared… I don't want to leave without you."

He felt the outer edge of his front jean pocket, touching the silky-smooth coating that covered the thing that could allow him to be with Gabriella.

Forever.

In their own heaven, all together…

He pulled it out of his pocket and held it in front of him. He flicked it open, showing the blade that grinned at him as he turned it a couple times.

Gabriella grabbed his wrist and held it firmly. "Troy, don't do it… "

A sob fled his mouth. "I don't know if I can live without you… "

"But Troy, for over a year, you _have _lived without me. Our son depends on you, and without you there, my parents might try to take him and raise him themselves. I don't want that to happen. I don't want my son to be raised around druggies."

Troy pushed the blade back in with the palm of his hand and sighed.

"You have the courage and strength to make it through this. I know you do." Gabriella kissed the side of his face. "In my book, you're my hero. You saved me from having to deal with my mom and dad, you gave me the love every girl deserves, and I'm happy with that- "

"But you don't understand!" He stood up and moved in front of her. "You get to live in Apex, and I have to live on Earth, where nothing makes sense! I have to live without you, and I have to raise in which every time I look at him, he reminds me so much of you. He is the only thing that I can cherish of your memory, Gabs! I love him, but I love you so, so much more in a different way!"

She stood up. "I can't come back, Troy… " She wiped a couple tears away. "But you have to know that every second of every god damn day, I'm thinking about you and Talon. You two are the only things I have to love in this fucked up world! Look at me, I'm a ghost who miraculously turned into a human for a day, but I don't know when I'll become invisible again."

"Then let me kill myself… " He flicked his knife open. "Just let me kill myself so we can be together forever… "

"Talon needs you, Troy." Gabriella touched Troy's face as tears streamed down both of their faces. "He needs his daddy."

"And he needs his mommy, but she isn't here… " He sobbed and pulled the knife out again. "Gabs, please… "

"But Talon- "

"I'll kill him too! So we can all be together- "

"We won't be in the same Apex! Our son and I would, but you wouldn't!"

"What do you mean? There's only one Apex."

"Yeah, but there are different sections. People are grouped by the way they die. Talon and I would have something in common." (A/N: Remember that sentence I told you to remember? Well, pay attention to the next part.)

"The way you die? I would kill him, and then kill myself. A murder and a suicide. You and I would be together. In the suicide place- "

"No, Talon and I would be in the same place… "

"But you committed suicide. You slit your throat- " He cut himself off.

Tears began pouring down both of their cheeks. Troy's eyes got huge.

"You… " He couldn't get the words out.

She said them for him.

"I was murdered."

A large gust hit Troy in the gut and winded him. He suddenly lost all his breath. He lost all will for life.

"Gabriella… " He sobbed.

"I'm so sorry Troy… I thought you knew… " She cried.

He couldn't control himself. His body started quivering, and as tears fell down his cheeks, his voice became teary. "Who would want to do that do you? You were innocent! You didn't do anything wrong!"

She sobbed. "I don't even know who it was… It was too quick for me to see."

Troy quickly lunged forward and grabbed her body in his arms. He held on tightly, not being able to control his emotions. He cried into her shoulder and she cried into his neck. They cried like they had never cried before.

"You're so innocent… " He sobbed. "And so fragile… "

She curled into him and sobbed. "I love you… "

"I love you too… " He stroked her hair and kissed the top of her head. "What mother fucker would want to hurt you?"

She shook her head.

"I'll find someone to kill me after I kill Talon. That won't be hard in this neighborhood. We can all three be together."

"No! Troy, I'm telling you, don't you dare even try it!" She grabbed his arm "Please… Just live your life and take care of Talon… For me?"

"Gabriella- "

"Don't do it!"

"It only hurts for a second."

Gabriella let go of Troy's arm. "It hurts for an eternity."

Troy stared into Gabriella's eyes and she stared back, hoping glimmering in her eyes along with salty tears. She withdrew.

"I want you to be able to live your life and not have to worry about me. I'm a memory, Troy. You're not. I'm gone forever, you still have years to live. You can meet another girl, get married, have more babies and love them like I know you love Talon. You can have a big house and play football, retire at 35 and live the good life until you die. Your kids are going to be beautiful; they're going to look just like you. They'll have your beautiful blue eyes, your cute nose, and your straight ass hair. You'll go to their school and drop them off, you'll kiss them goodbye and tell them that you love them more than anything in the world. Then, you'll drop your wife off at work and tell her that you love her, and kiss her like you kiss me. You'll live your life. You won't kill yourself. You won't be mad at life for taking me away. Troy, you need to understand that in Apex, you can't get hurt. You can't get scratched or ran over by a car or sliced up. You can't walk down the sidewalk and look up at the blue sky and be able to grow up. It is a miserable place. Really, it is. You don't want to live the rest of eternity that way. You need to have a life, and when your time comes to die, I'll be up in Apex waiting for you at the front gate. I swear on it.

Troy had his head buried into her shoulder, listening to every word she said, crying his heart out. He knew she was right. She was always right.

But he didn't want to move on…

"I don't want to live without you… "

"But you can do it. I'll always be watching you. I'll let you know if you're doing something wrong, or if you're being watched."

"No, Gabriella, please… "

She kissed the side of his head and rubbed his back. "You have to live your life before you die."

She was right again.

You have to live your life before you die.


	35. Poem Against The Sunrise

Troy's mind was on Gabriella's murder.

He gripped the steering wheel as he waited at the red stoplight.

Gabriella's appearance was magic. Pure magic. But she was murdered.

His other hand held Gabriella's in a tight grip. He squeezed it and looked over at her, fear spread across his face.

"You alright?" She looked over at him. "We don't have to go the park, Troy."

He looked deep into her big chocolate irises that swirled with the blank white of her actual eye. The innocence that haunted her beautiful, angelic face made Troy crazy for her. She had a light about her, something that wasn't there before. She seemed different somehow. Maybe a little softer around the edges, or maybe even because he was used to seeing her stomach hanging out, and now it was as flat and toned as could be.

_Or maybe it was because she was dead._

He shivered.

"Babe?" She jiggled his hand a little and looked up at the stoplight, which was now green. "Troy?"

He continued to stare at her like she was the goddess of Earth, the person who controlled his every movement, the beautiful girl whom he had passed every day at school, and sent butterflies fluttering around in his stomach. He couldn't believe he was in the presence of the girl he had fallen head over heels for, the girl that spawned his son, the one he really, truly fell in love with. He loved her more than life itself. He would do anything to find her in heaven. He would kill himself if he didn't have Talon.

_But he wouldn't be with Gabriella…_

"Troy!" Gabriella waved her hand in front of her face. "Troy, it's a green light!"

He didn't break his gaze.

"TROY!"

A car horn blared behind him, and he snapped out of his trance and stepped on the gas, wheeling them forward with a massive amount of acceleration. He held the wheel with his eyes wide, staring at the road as he finally began to slow down.

"What's going on? Why were you staring at me?" She was a little concerned.

"I just… " He shook his head and sighed, turning off the road. He turned the car off, leaned against the steering wheel, and set his face in his hands. "I can't stop thinking about- "

"My murder… " She sighed.

She watched as the same salt water dripped from his eyes as she had seen the day she watched him cry over their dead son. The way he tried to be strong for her didn't help. They thought their son was dead. But alas, he was alive and strong, waiting for his mommy and daddy to come for him.

And Gabriella died that day…

And she watched him from heaven as he cried some more, wanting to be with him so badly.

The pain from her death never did leave his body. He always boxed it up inside of him and waited for the right moment when he was alone to cry half-heartedly. And then his daddy senses kicked in and he was there for Talon.

She never wanted to see him suffer.

She never wanted to cause him pain.

His vision went black.

…..

Crickets chirped their love songs to one another.

Love birds sang their beautiful melodies, saluting the daylight as the sun dropped beyond the autumn trees. The wavy clouds surrounded by baby blue sky turned into shimmering stars and a black night.

Gabriella sat in the passenger seat of the car. She cried softly and waited as Troy sat in the seat, completely knocked out. His breath still rose and fell, but she became scared that he would never wake up.

What would she do?

Signs of life started to emerge from Troy. His eyes flickered and he groaned a little.

"Troy?" She leaned over the seat and grabbed his hand.

He looked directly up at her without saying a word.

"Are you okay?" She said softly.

"Yeah… " He finally croaked a word.

"Do you want some water or something?" She ran her fingers through his hair.

"No… " He coughed a little. "Just stay close to me… "

She ran her fingers through his hair and bent down, placing a warm kiss on his chilled forehead. He shivered a little. "I'm right here."

A few minutes of silence passed before the sky in front of them turned a little red as the sun slowly began rising.

"Gabi, I don't want you to leave… Please stay here with me."

"I wish it was that easy." Tears dripped from her face as she watched his slow movements. She noticed the tiny puffs of air leaving his mouth as he slowly inhaled and exhaled. "Are you cold?"

"A little."

She turned the key in the ignition and listened as the car rumbled to a start. She blasted the heat.

"Can we go home now?" Troy sat up a little and rubbed his eyes.

"Home… " Gabriella looked down at her fingers, playing with her bracelet. "Home is with my horse and my two dogs."

"Home is where the lions roar." He began remembering a certain poem that he heard right before he met Gabriella. The poem that he hadn't remembered until exactly then.

"Home is where the eagles soar." She looked out at the beautiful sunrise, watching the birds fly across the setting sun. She knew the same exact poem.

"Home is where you'll always be." Troy gave her hand a little squeeze.

"Home is where the angels sing." Gabriella smiled a little out of the corner of her mouth.

"Home is the dawn's break." He stared with her at the sunrise.

"Home is the end of fate." She looked into the clouds.

"Home is where you'll find me." He kissed her hands as his eyes began to water.

"Home is where I'll love thee." She rested her head on his shoulder.

Ironically, both knew the poem.

But, that wasn't the end.

"Home is my golden guide." The golden sun rose until the air. Troy kissed Gabriella's head.

"Home is my molten pride." She said directly after him as the flares of the sun lashed out towards the Earth in anger. The sun was more vivid than ever and both Troy and Gabriella could both see every detail of it without blinding their eyes. It was magical. Nobody could look at the sun without going blind.

"Home loves the saddest man." A homeless man appeared walking along the street in front of them, skinny, depressed, and unsatisfied with life.

"Home grows to make amends." She felt comfortable as her body began to numb. Their fingers began to entwine.

"Home is our beautiful song." The birds began chirping a beautiful tune that Gabriella had loved when she was alive, and missed very much.

"Home is where our souls will walk along." Their bodies molded together as they watched the sun, without pain in their eyes. Her lit body became dim.

"Home is what we have to choose." Troy's eyes poured tears. He knew he was losing her.

"Home is where I'll find you." She whispered.

A trail of wind whisked past him. He found himself clutching nothing but air.

And the sunset rose lonely in Troy's heart as he drove down the Boulevard of Broken Dreams.


	36. Back In Baton Rouge

The days were gloomy.

Gabriella never came, she was never there, and it was all just a big, big dream.

_Yeah, okay._

She _was_ real and he wasn't dreaming. He knew it in his heart. He drove home after she vanished. He went home and cried to himself in his bedroom like when he was a little boy and didn't get what he wanted.

_He didn't get what he wanted…_

His life had always been great. He had everything he wanted, when he wanted, and how he wanted it. He had the big bucks and his dreams had come alive. The girls, the fame, the money, and the stardom had become a major part of his life.

He still had the money, his dream, the fame, and the girls. He had them sitting right there in front of him if he wanted them. He could literally just reach out and grab them. He could go to a nightclub or a strip club and spend tons of money and watch sexy girls take their clothes off. He could waste himself with alcohol and dance the night away while he had the neighbor watch Talon. He could be a normal 20 year old with a fake ID that made him 21. He could do what he wanted. Talon didn't hold him back

But what did?

Gabriella.

As the weekend skimmed by, there was one day that was extremely hot and felt like a summer day, which wasn't odd in Ohio. So, he relinquished his tight grip on Talon and let him swim in the little pool Kay and Jack bought for him before he was born. It was just a little plastic swimming pool in which Talon found great pleasure in rolling in it.

Troy watched from afar, but not too far. He was still very protective of Talon but could let Talon have a few moments of fun in his screwed up life without a mother.

There would be a day when Talon asked where his mommy was.

Troy would stutter over the words, not knowing how to tell his precious baby that his mother was killed the day he was born.

Who was out to get her? Nobody knew that answer.

Marley flew out from nowhere, zooming towards the miniature pool. She jumped in it, sending Talon in a hysterical laughing spree. She pounced around the pool like she had never touched water before. It was something that Troy cherished, watching his son and his son's mother's dog playing like nothing had ever happened to them. No tragedy had come to their lives.

And Hannah, sadly, was taken back by Gabriella's parents, who also took Inkheart and Grey. But, they left the silly old Australian Shepherd for Kay and Jack. She was a beautiful girl. Troy couldn't understand why they didn't take Marley too.

Gabriella's memory resided in the two living beings in front of him.

They were the only two parts of Gabriella he had left.

He stood up and stretched his strong arms out, yawned as his daydream came to a close, and started towards the pool with a towel in his hand.

"Hey Tal, are you done yet?"

Talon looked up at Troy with chubby cheeks and innocent eyes.

"Come on, Talon."

Troy lifted Talon out of the pool and wrapped him in a towel. He rubbed the moisture off Talon's hair and stepped into the house.

"Hey mom?" Troy set Talon on the kitchen counter and started to dry him off. "Do you think Talon's going to be fat? Is he going to grow out of this?"

Kay was stirring some spaghetti noodles on the stove as she prepared lunch. "All babies are fat at his age. You were even fatter than him. You had fat rolls on your legs, you had about ten on your stomach, and your cheeks hid your eyes. But you were so adorable. But look at you, you grew out of it. He will too."

Troy sighed. "Do you think I'm a bad dad?" He looked innocently at his mom.

She turned towards him a little. "No, I think you're a great father. Why?"

"Because I feel like a failure… " Troy set Talon on the floor.

"I mean, no parent is perfect, but you're an excellent father. I've seen much, much worse than you."

He watched as Talon started playing with the strings on the knee of Troy's ripped jeans. "He doesn't have a mom, he doesn't have a stable dad, and his life is just so screwed up."

"Stable dad?"

"Long story." Troy said in his guilt.

"What do you mean, stable?"

"Nothing, mom. Forget it."

"No, don't you dare avoid- "

"We need to get going… " Troy avoided the conversation with his mom and whisked Talon out of the kitchen.

…..

He had missed Baton Rouge.

The smell of the city wafted through the air and smelled like home to Troy.

As he drove down the busy streets, he thought to himself about how he had actually ended up in Baton Rouge and how everything was so different in his life.

One thing he looked forward to was going back to college.

But, college would soon be harder than he expected.


	37. Avery Leech

Nothing hurt Troy worse than being sore after practice.

Without hesitation, he began to slowly slip back and miss practice. He even missed a couple games.

He started skipping class.

He blew off homework.

He threw away make-up work.

Troy needed a break from life. But he couldn't get it. So, for a couple weeks, he decided that it shouldn't hurt his perfect record too badly.

Wrong.

His first appearance back at school made him look like an idiot.

The second he stepped inside the building…

"Troy Bolton, report to the office."

He groaned.

As he entered the office, a looming chair smiled at him as if to say "sit or die".

So, he sat.

The office was filled with white, and nothing but it. The only lonely color in the room was Troy and a red rose sitting on the counter. Even the people seemed to have white hair, but actually, they were all brunettes that taught strict rules and had seen a couple slackers like Troy in their days.

But, they didn't care. All they wanted was money. They pumped more and more money out of students' bank accounts and drained their parents' accounts, leaving the family with no money. Everyone was broke.

What did the students get out of this?

Students graduated with a piece of paper that named what they were going to be every single solitary day for the rest of their lives and a "Congratulations".

A lady approached the front desk and looked over the rim of her glasses at Troy. "Troy Bolton?"

"Yeah."

"Mr. Northshore wants to see you."

He stood up and walked with the lady back to the head owner's office.

While he walked, he couldn't help but think _"Damn, she's got a nice ass"_.

The nice-assed lady opened the head owner's door and shut it behind him.

Mr. Northshore was a big and fat guy with a jolly personality. He had a brown beard and was slowly balding on the top of his head. He had a great alliance with the coaches of the teams, which meant he knew that Troy was slacking.

"Mr. Bolton… " Mr. Northshore flipped through a couple papers on his desk. "I remembered going to your high school game and watching you tear up that field. And I remember interviewing you when you accepted our request to come visit the college."

Troy nodded. "I remember too. Best day of my career."

Mr. Northshore smiled a little and chuckled. "May I ask you a couple questions?"

"Sure, go ahead."

He gestured to the chair, and Troy sat down immediately. He sat back.

"This says you're from Ohio, is that correct?"

"Yes, I'm from Ohio."

"Do you live here in Baton Rouge?"

"Yes."

"What are you planning on doing when you get out of college?"

Troy folded his hands. "I'm planning on going into the NFL, maybe, if I make it. If not, I'm studying mechanical tech right now."

He grinned. "Good thing you have a backup. It's always good to have a backup."

Troy nodded.

"Now, I was looking at your grades. I've seen them drop drastically in the past couple weeks. You've went from straight A's to straight D's and F's."

Troy hung his head.

"Is there anything going on right now? Are you having stress problems or are in a bad living situation?"

"No sir, I… Needed a little break, I guess?"

"That's no excuse, Mr. Bolton." Mr. Northshore sighed. "I can tell something is going on. People who have always had good grades just don't drop letters because they need a break. So, tell me. What's going on?"

"Nothing Mr. Northshore."

"Come on, everything is confidential."

Troy sighed. "It is a very long story. I don't have the time to really tell it."

Mr. Northshore sighed again. "Okay, anyway, the circumstance is getting very bad. If you don't bring your grades, I'm afraid you'll have to retake the classes."

Troy bit the inside of his mouth gently.

"I know."

"You don't seem too concerned."

"If I fail, I fail. I'll just have to retake the class."

Mr. Northshore leaned over the desk a little. "Mr. Bolton, I know you have that little boy to take care of. Talon, I believe is what you told me his name was."

"Yeah, Talon."

"He should be at the top of the list right now. His health, his care, well-being, everything. Since his mother isn't here, he depends on you. If you don't graduate, how are you going to support him? There is a very good chance of you not getting a job if you drop out now. You'll have no money, no job, no house, nothing."

Troy felt like a complete failure.

"I'm sorry, Mr. Northshore. I need to go- "

"Just think about that, son. You have someone else to take care of now, not just yourself." He shuffled some of the papers on his desk. "Dismissed."

Troy noticed he was by himself in the hallway.

One thing that Troy hated was being by himself.

_He had been finding solace by himself, lately._

He stood there, a crowd of air, walls, and ceilings pushed into him as if he was a tiny rock on the huge Earth. He was the lone wolf that howled for the pack to find him.

But nobody answered.

Whispers suddenly greeted him.

He wasn't scared. He knew exactly who it was.

"Gabs, baby, I know you're there." He said, feeling like he said it to himself.

He could slightly make out the words "I'm right here".

A smile spread across his face. "Somebody's going to think I'm going mental if I stand here and talk to you with 20 cameras facing me. But I guess that doesn't matter."

He could hear ghastly breathing in front of him. It did scare him a little, but he kept the faith that it was really Gabriella. He knew it was. It had to be.

He held his hand out a little. It entered a cloud of complete cold. The cold gathered around his hand and tightened up, the cloud becoming more tightly packed together.

Troy could tell she was holding his hand.

The breeze floated around his body, chilling him all the way to the bone. It was the kind of cold that made your bones hurt. He shivered as the cold sliced deeper and deeper, like a knife cutting some flesh. It got so cold that he had to zip his jacket up.

A weird feeling came across him. He felt as if she was trying to tell him something.

_If it was actually Gabriella._

Someone entered the building, and Troy withdrew his hand and placed it at his side.

This person looked particularly familiar.

The guy kind of glared at him. He had a head of auburn hair and a set of hazel eyes. His face was long and skinny, but his cheeks puffed out slightly right below his eyes. He was about Troy's age, maybe 18 or 19.

He was way too familiar…

The guy squinted at Troy, and then with a chuckled, crossed his arms. "Troy Bolton. I never thought I would see you again."

Troy raised an eyebrow. "Who are you?"

The guy rolled his eyes. "Avery Leech."

Troy couldn't put his finger on who Avery Leech was.

"Ally's boyfriend."

"Oh." Troy nodded. "I remember you."

"Yeah, and I remember you. How did you get here?"

"College tour trip." Avery said. "You?"

"This is where I go to college at. I graduated already."

Avery looked down the hallway.

The cold tightened around Troy like it was trying to suffocate him.

"What's wrong, Gabs?" He whispered.

Avery looked down at his feet. "I have to catch up… " He said, and bolted down the hallway.

And the cold which was wrapped tightly around his subsided.

And there was no cold left…


	38. Prologue 4

He was a player…

Troy pretended he cared so much about the girl he brought home. Once he used her, he dumped her and shoved her out on the road.

But the worst part of it all was that he couldn't remember anything about her. Her name, what she looked like, etc.

And one day, he heard a familiar name, whom moved to Baton Rouge.

But, what does this have to do with Troy's world?

Let's just say he found himself in another deep situation, something that will be mentioned soon.

Something that may pull him out of his bad habits, or submerge him deeper to the point where he will almost lose Talon.

Troy's world is a hydrogen bomb. Hydrogen and Fluorine want their octet. Hydrogen bonds with Fluorine, giving it its last electron, its last hope, and suddenly, Hydrogen's world crashes as Fluorine explodes, leaving Hydrogen left in the dust.

Troy is Fluorine, Hydrogen is everyone who cares about Troy.

One day, Troy's world will explode.

He will be the one who needs help.

And nobody will be there.

Nobody can predict the future. If you make 1000 predictions, one is most likely bound to come true. That doesn't mean any will come true, either.

Just like nobody can predict Troy's future.

Fate will lead him the rest of the way.

We all just have to sit around and wait to see what life brings him.

And wait for that one moment where he will break free and find himself.

In a mansion, or in a dumpster.

With Talon, or without Talon.

To hold tight on to Gabriella's memory, or let her fly free into heaven, where she belongs.

To become a man, or stay a childish teenager.

When will he spread his wings and fly?


	39. The Slacker

Month after month after month, Troy found himself not only in self-destruction, but engulfing himself in a habit that he really didn't want to be in.

It was his lifeline. He lived on it. He couldn't wait to come home every day, hand Talon off to the babysitter, and ride off into the sunset surrounded by stripping girls, drunk friends, and most importantly, the drinks themselves. He found joy in spiking his friends' drinks and watching them slowly go into their drunken modes. They all danced around with the strippers and acting like nothing else in the world matter. There was no Talon, there was no mom and dad, no Ally, no Gabriella, nothing. It was heaven on earth to Troy.

Troy became annoyed at the consistent sound of the construction next door and rolled in his drunken sleep. He covered his head with the dainty white pillow and snuggled deeper into the warm blankets.

It was now the end of June, going on July.

He groaned and sat up, rubbing his blood-shot eyes and wondering what he did the night before. He could never remember anything.

Nor could be remember that he had a son to take care of.

At least he remembered to call the babysitter.

He grabbed his jeans that were hanging off the side of the bed and slowly slipped them on, being careful not to upset his sore body.

He suddenly heard Talon's screams of terror.

It sounded like Talon had just woken up from a nightmare.

Troy immediately grabbed his phone, sighing, and dialed a number that was inscribed in his heart. He knew it so well he could say it without fault.

"What now, Troy?" A girl's voice came over the phone. She sounded irritated.

"Hi Wendy, how are you doing?" Troy tried to seem as innocent and as sweet as possible.

"Don't sweet talk me, Troy. I thought you said you were going to spend your weekend with Talon." Obviously, Talon's screams were heard in the background.

"I just need you to watch him for today. Just one day, Wendy."

"Troy, you said I could have weekends off. That hasn't happened since early December, since I started babysitting him."

"I'm sorry! I have things to do today. I'll pay you extra, I promise. Just for one more day!"

The girl groaned over the phone. "I'll be there in five minutes. But this is the last day this weekend that I'm watching him. And go stop him from crying! Jesus Christ Troy, you're not even giving him the love he needs!"

"I will, I will." He said. "He just woke up."

The phone died and Troy threw it on the bed with a sigh.

Troy walked directly past Talon's room and into the kitchen, where he grabbed some milk and a bowl of cereal. From a bottle, he poured clear, sparkling juice into a cup. He sat down with it as a migraine rolled into his head.

"Damn it… " Troy set his head on the table. "I need another fucking hobby… "

His door opened and shut, and a small, skinny girl with auburn hair around eighteen walked inside.

She walked right past Troy.

"You're a screwed up father, you know… " Wendy said.

"Hello to you too, Wendy."

Talon's cries were immediately hushed as she walked into the room. He could hear Wendy cooing to Talon, and he sobbed a couple times as the word "daddy" came from his mouth. She still shushed him and told him how much of a good boy he was.

She walked out of the room with him and stood at the opposite end of the table in front of Troy. He slurped up some milk and set his bowl on the table. "What?"

"You are the _worst_ father on this planet, Troy Bolton. This is your son. You should be taking care of him, not me."

"I'm just so busy with college and- "

"Don't give me that bull!" She yelled. "You were kicked out of college back in April, you ass! You're such a liar, a cheating, lying asshole. That's all you are. You can't take one day out of your boring life and spend a little time with your son."

Troy sat there like he was the victim of his own pride.

"You're a low-life." She moved towards the door. "Straighten your act up before you lose your kid." She slammed the door behind her.

Troy took a sip of his drink.

Spiked water, one of his favorites.

When life needed him, he wasn't there.

He was invisible, like Gabriella.

But life moved on while he stayed back.


	40. Spikes and Drops

Troy sat around a group of his college friends.

All four of them were heavy drinkers, kind of like Troy.

But nobody seemed to want to drink that evening…

He was curled up on the end of his couch, listening to all of them chat. He couldn't help but think about Talon…

The best thing that ever happened to him was slipping right out of his fingers. But did he do anything about it? No.

"Bolton, don't you have a kid?" Danny said from across the room as he stared out the door's peephole.

Troy turned his head. "Yeah, why?"

"No reason… "

A knock was heard at the door. The rest of the guys looked up.

"Is someone there?" Troy said to Danny.

"No, nobody- "

"The babysitter's here, isn't she?" Troy sighed as he stood up from the couch. "Get the door, Danny!"

Danny slowly opened the door. "Troy doesn't want you here- "

"Tell him that his son is freaking out and we can't get him to stop crying." Wendy looked frustrated. She was holding Talon, who was screaming so loudly that it rang in Troy's ears.

"Fuck you Danny!" Troy pushed him out of the way and shook his head. "Sorry, Wendy."

"We can't get him to stop crying! He's been in a horrible mood all day! He hasn't eaten, he won't drink, he won't sleep- "

"Here, let me take him for the rest of the night… " Troy sighed and pulled his wallet out. He handed her a fifty. "I'll get the rest of what I owe you tomorrow." Troy said, shoving it back into his pocket. He grabbed Talon from her, and he immediately quit crying.

"No… " She pushed the fifty back to him. "I don't want it."

"But you're his babysitter." Troy said. "I pay you to watch him."

"I've already gotten paid tonight." She smiled a little. "Just you offering to take him for the night is something I haven't seen in a while. And you're not drunk."

Troy sighed. "Just take the fifty. I insist."

"No, please- "

"Wendy, just take it." He smiled. "It's a tip, then. Take the tip."

She sighed and put it in her pocket. "I'll see you."

"Alright. Thanks, Wendy." He closed the door.

"Is that your kid?" Quentin stood up and stretched.

"Yeah." Troy said. "He's been in a bad mood all day today, and she brought him over so I could calm him down. I'm just going to keep him for the night."

"He looks just like you." Brendan said.

"I know." Troy set his down. "You want something to eat, Tal?"

Talon nodded and followed Troy into the kitchen.

"Who is his mom, a prostitute or something?" Carter snickered.

Troy turned around. "No. She wasn't anywhere near a prostitute."

"Then where the hell is she?" Carter raised an eyebrow.

"She's dead… " Troy said quietly. "She was murdered right after he was born."

"Oh… " All four of them bit their lip. "Sorry, man." Carter said.

He nodded and opened the cupboard. "What do you want?"

Talon shrugged.

"How about mac and cheese? How does that sound?"

Talon's eyes lit up. "Yeah!" He said in his babyish voice.

"Alright."

The four friends were quiet as Troy prepared easy mac for Talon.

Troy set it on the table and lifted Talon into a chair. He gave him a spoon, and Talon chomped away like he had been starved his entire life.

"What's his name?" Quentin walked towards them.

"His name is Talon. He's going to turn two in about ten days."

Talon watched as Troy pulled a bottle from the cupboard.

"Do you wanna spike some kool-aid?"

"I'm down!" Justin stood up.

And as Troy, Quentin, Brendan, Carter, and Danny started back into their drinking habits, Talon was left to himself.

A two year old doesn't just follow rules. They break them.

He slid through the door and down the apartment's hallway.

Troy noticed suddenly that Talon was gone. "Talon?" Troy looked around. "Tal, where did you go, buddy?"

Talon looked down the steps.

They were some pretty steep steps.

He gripped the side with his left hand as he slowly tried to step down.

"Talon?" Troy looked around.

The door was wide open.

"TALON!" Troy yelled and bolted out the door.

"Where are you going- "

"TALON!" He rushed down the hallway and towards the steps, where Talon slowly stepped down.

"Talon, get back h- "

It was too late.

Talon slipped and one step after another, he made the perilous trip down the steps, rolling, and screaming out for Troy.

"Oh god… " Troy rushed down the stairs towards Talon, who was screaming in pain. "Talon, are you okay?"

Tears rushed down Talon's face as he let out bloody screams. His forehead had been deeply cut and was gushing blood. His left leg was completely mangled, and he could barely move.

Troy picked Talon up as his Brendan came to the stairs. "What happene- "

"Call 911!" Troy yelled up the stairs as he pulled Talon into his arms.

It was evident that this was Troy's last chance...


	41. Spirit Of Life

The hospital room became a sorrowful place as morning came around.

Talon and Troy has not slept all night.

Talon's fall had caused him a huge wound in his head which was held together by 23 stitches. He also fractured his leg fibula.

He was in excruciating pain.

Troy listened to the heart monitor. His heartbeat was so steady, so smooth, and Troy could feel that Talon was a lucky kid to just get away with a cut and a broken leg.

Most kids his age get killed falling down three flights of stairs.

Once morning had come, Troy gave Talon a kiss on the forehead and began to pet his hair. The more Troy thought about hurting Talon, the more he hurt inside. He never intended to hurt Talon. He wanted to be with Talon. He was just too drunk to realize what he had half the time. Ironically, the same thing was happening to Talon as Gabriella had with her parents. The drugs, the neglect, etc. He never wanted Talon to go through that, let alone the almost exact same thing Gabriella went through. What was next in line? The abuse? The torture of Talon's heart? He then began to vow a heartfelt promise to Talon. Something that Troy would never forget.

"Talon, I'm so sorry… " Tears dripped down Troy's face. "Daddy's going to stay home with you and help you heal that broken leg of yours... I'm going to start being there with you, and I'm going to stop the drinking and everything… I love you too much to lose you."

Someone knocked on the door, and automatically walked inside. The man was wearing a suit and looked pretty formal. "Are you Troy Bolton?"

Troy nodded.

"Can we see you outside?"

"Yeah, sure." Troy said.

As Troy stepped outside, he noticed that there was another man there, along with Wendy.

"We are here on account of Child Protective Services. I am George Elwood and my partner is Derek Colonel." One of the men said, showing them an ID. "We have been notified that Talon Beau Bolton is being illegally neglected by you."

Troy's heart stopped.

"This young lady has described you as uncaring and self-centered. She says that you have a drinking habit and are not at all taking care of your son. She also says that you call her every day and ask her to babysit your son while you are at college, but in fact, we have looked up your records and it says that you were expelled from college on April 26th."

Troy looked over at Wendy. Then, he looked back at the men.

He couldn't move, speak, or even find himself.

He blacked out in a world where there was nothing.

He remembered when he first figured out that Gabriella was pregnant. He was so scared and so remorseful at the same time, but he took care of her like she was his angel from above. He soon fell in love with her and their baby.

He remembered the first time he saw Talon.

That black and white picture of something floating in the middle of what looked like salt water. It was weird. He couldn't really describe it. And what made him feel even stranger was that the doctor was all smiles as she said. "It's a girl".

He raised an eyebrow. "A girl? What the hell? I was in it for a boy. I'm outta here." He pretended to walk out, but Gabriella grabbed the back of his jeans.

"Woah, baby daddy." She pulled him back. "You're going to deal with a girl whether you like it or not."

"You're screwed up."

"Why?" Gabriella laughed.

"You just had to release an girl egg at the SAME exact time you got pregnant. This sucks, Gabriella."

"Stop it, smart-ass." She smacked his chest. "You'll love our baby whether it's a girl or a boy."

He remembered the lonely girl who had drug addicts for friends and for parents, the one who was surrounded by something that she didn't want to be in.

But most of all, Troy remember watching his son grow, watching him say his first word, rolling over, crawling, then walking, and now, babbling like every other two year old.

He loved Talon more than anything in the world.

_And he would be gone in a matter of days…_

"Are you taking my son from me?" Troy said in a light tone.

The two men looked at each other. "I'm afraid so, Mr. Bolton."

Troy's world was Fluorine.

He exploded.

"NO! YOU WON'T TAKE HIM AWAY!" He suddenly broke into tears and started panicking. "HE'S MY EVERYTHING! HE'S THE ONLY THING I HAVE LEFT OF MY GABI!"

"You should have realized that when you had him in your possession." George said.

"HE'S MY SON! I LOVE HIM! I DIDN'T MEAN TO HURT HIM!" Troy cried desperately. "PLEASE DON'T TAKE HIM!"

"I'm sorry, Mr. Bolton." Derek tried to take control. "We are only here because we have to be."

Troy guarded the door with his life. "NO! PLEASE!"

"You have five minutes. Say goodbye."

Troy sobbed loudly and shook his head. "This can't be happening, it can't be… "

"We have a hearing for you on the fourth. We expect you to attend, and if you don't, he will automatically go into the adoption agency- "

Troy shook his head.

"Just go in there and say goodbye." George handed him a paper for the court hearing.

He began to feel the familiar rush of adrenaline run through his body.

Like when he played football and he felt he wasn't going to get that touchdown…

He felt that _exact_ way…

"Mr. Bolton, you either go in that room for five minutes or you leave now." Derek crossed his arms slowly. "We are not here for playing around."

Troy's heart began to race.

He slowly fought the urge to just tackle them.

He wanted to kill those men, and Wendy for that matter.

But, he turned around.

He pushed the door open.

His son lie there, awake, waiting for his daddy to come sit by his bedside and talk to him all day.

His daddy would only be there for five minutes…

Troy sat down in his chair.

He stared at the wall for a few minutes, knowing that it was his own fault.

But he truly didn't mean it. Not now, not ever.

He never wanted to hurt anyone, let alone Talon.

He let his parents down.

He let his friends down.

He let Talon down.

And most importantly, he let Gabriella down…

He turned to Talon slowly, leaned over the bed, and slowly gathered Talon in his arms. He cradled Talon like he did when Talon was just a baby, fresh home from the hospital without his mother. He was so innocent, so unaware of the cruel world. He didn't know his mother was dead. All he knew was eating and sleeping. And as he began to grow under Troy's supervision only, he began to recognize his daddy, the one and the only one who took care of him. Troy felt a sense of security, a sense of responsibility and nobility with Talon. Something he had never felt before. He would do anything for his little boy. He would die for Talon. If monsters were going to eat them, he would have shot Talon in the head with the only bullet left and let the monsters tear himself apart piece by piece. He loved Talon more than anything on the planet. Now, his pride and joy was not his anymore. He would not be able to hug him and kiss him, he would not be able to wake up and watch Talon sleep peacefully in bed. He wouldn't have a son. He would be an empty man, someone who was too pathetic to keep his girlfriend alive and his son in his custody. Pathetic. Spoiled. Ugly… And what would he do without them? He would indulge himself in something that he finds solace in. Beer, Wine, Vodka, Whiskey, whatever alcohol he could find. Nobody would care about him. He would just be another pathetic drinker walking down the side of the road all drunk and unhappy with life.

If he lost Talon, he would be nothing…

A rocking chair sat in the corner of the room…

Troy stood up with Talon cradled in his arms. He slowly walked towards the rocking chair, step by step…

_Just like a teenager's footsteps…_

He listened carefully to the sound that his shoes made the second they contacted the rough floor. A little tapping noise… Something Troy had never appreciated before.

He was alive, well, and had a beautiful son…

For Gabriella, it was different..

For her footsteps would never again be heard on planet Earth…

He took a seat in the rocking chair. With his tiptoes barely reaching the floor from the tall rocking chair, he slowly began to rock, pushing his toes off the ground and letting them return to home once again. He grabbed the hospital blanket and covered Talon up with it, who was shivering and still sobbing. Talon cuddled against Troy, and Troy could hear his slow, paced breathing. It was amazing how just one time, the sperm united with the egg to create something so unique and so beautiful. Technology allowed you to see your baby before it was born, tell you the gender, and even take 3D pictures of your baby's face to compare to the rest of the family. And then, that one moment when the baby finally finds its way to the world, screaming as its strong lungs should scream and the heart beating in strong paces, you realize that it is the best moment of your entire life, and that you helped create that life you now hold in your arms.

Troy remembered how happy he felt when he first saw Talon when he was born. It didn't matter how small or squirmy he was, how ugly or bloody, all that mattered was that he had Talon. Finally, he could breathe a sigh of relief.

But, he was about to lose his own creation, the only thing he had left in his life. It was all about to go down the drain…

Talon yawned as Troy continued rocking him. Troy moved Talon's over-grown hair which lay across his forehead in blonde strands. Talon mirrored Troy's blue eyes (they were exactly identical) and those blue eyes began to close gently.

The only thing he had left rested in his arms. The rocking chair squeaked as it rocked back and forth, like the one in Gabriella's hospital room shortly after she gave birth to the son he was holding now.

_And the room she died in._

He found himself full of nothing but sorrow as Talon drifted off to sleep, wondering why life hit him so hard, and why nobody wanted to be there for him…

Not one person had stepped up and offered Troy help, not even his own parents.

He got a girl pregnant. His girlfriend was murdered. His college kicked him out. Talon was going to be taken away.

There was no will for him to live…

He sobbed under his breath and kissed the top of Talon's head.

What else would happen?

The door cracked open and the George stepped in. "Mr. Bolton, your five minutes is up."

Tears fell from Troy's face as he continued to rock him back and forth. He nodded and said a few words.

"Five minutes isn't long enough to express love." Troy said. "It takes years of trust and care. Are you really going to take him away?"

"That depends on the decision of the courts."

"Courts my ass. Is he going to be taken from me or not?"

"If you prove yourself to be a good father, he won't."

Troy planted a kiss on Talon's resting head and slowly stood up from the chair. He walked towards the bed and placed Talon upon it.

"I love you, Talon… "

Troy felt a cold feeling shoot up his back.

He sobbed once again as tears fell from his cheeks to the rough floor. The rocking chair in the corner still rocked as if someone was in it. It began to slow, and then stopped.

Over Talon's body, Troy whispered something that defined his own determination.

"I'll be bringing you home in a couple days."


	42. Realization

Life isn't right without your family.

Troy soon figured that out.

He found himself at his lowest point, waiting around in an old, dusty apartment room in the middle of the night. It was filled with dirty air and a slight smell of must. There were old fingerprints on the sliding glass door to the balcony, from Talon staring out the window when he was about a year and a half. Talon's toy box was abandoned by the hallway, although it had been abandoned for months earlier. Easy Mac and Chicken Nuggets were left untouched in their places, waiting for that little boy to one day chomp on them. But, the chicken nuggets were freezer burned and the easy mac cheese was outdated.

Everything seemed worn out. Even Troy.

He hadn't been to a party or a club in four days and was dying to go. Although he was wasting himself with tons of his stocked up alcohol, he was about to run out, and he vowed that when he ran out, he would stop.

But for now, he had a flask of whiskey and was going at it.

Motionless on the couch, he began to realize that things weren't turning out very good. The worse could happen. Not getting kicked out on the street, not losing his friends, not talking to his parents, but losing the two best things that had ever happened to him.

Talon and Gabriella.

He hadn't lost Gabriella. She was there with him, 24/7. She wouldn't leave, she wouldn't let his flame burn out, and she definitely wasn't going to let him lose Talon.

He felt like she wasn't there.

The very unfortunate had happened, but death had not found its way to Troy yet. Things were bad, but not dire. He had lost his job, his college career, his dignity, but still had not lost custody of Talon. Most of his life had gone down the drain, but those embers in the earlier fire still had a chance to be lit. Everything was lying on the game board in front of him; he just had to make the right move to win the game.

He still had a burning chance to make things right.

But how could he make things right? What were the first steps?

Stop drinking.

Get a job.

Provide a stable home.

Get Talon back.

Get back into college (if possible).

He wallowed in his own sorrow as he felt completely sorry for himself. Nobody was there for him, nobody wanted to help him. If they were there, they just dragged him deeper into the horrible mess.

Somebody needed to rescue his body from the burning flames.

But how could somebody rescue someone who didn't want to be rescued?

He flipped through a couple papers in front of him looking at the different amounts he owed to different places. $145.50 to the cable, $708.00 in rent, $445.98 to the electric company, more to the water, gas, sewage, garbage, money, money, money, money bills, bills, bills…

He couldn't take it.

He had also received 2 notices that explained is he should not leave the premises within 30 days, he would be forcefully removed and blah blah blah.

He didn't know what to do or how to do it, but he knew he had to do something or else there was a huge chance he would lose Talon.

He now knew he had hit rock bottom.

Sighing, he stood up and walked into his kitchen. His jaw dropped.

"Jesus Christ… Custody hearing is tomorrow… "

His finger traced a line along the certain days on the calendar in which his life would be a living hell. Literally. His fight for Talon wasn't a game. He could seriously end up hurting that little boy in the long run. It would cost him Talon and his own life, in which he vowed to himself to take it if he did not win Talon back…

The days of June were long; July was even longer. Those hot, steaming summer days when you can barely breathe are the ones that Troy hated the most. In the dead heat of summer was his and Talon's birthdays, on the same day. What a coincidence.

He loved Talon; there was no doubt. He wanted Talon before his birthday. Would he get him back?

He didn't have a sure answer.

But one thing he did knew.

He was going to try his hardest, even if it killed him.

Talon's heart would not be broken forever…


	43. Disaster Day

It was horrid.

Troy's nerves were completely shaken as he quivered in fear. He stood lifelessly at the table, awaiting his lawyer.

_He needed one to get out of this mess._

He looked around the room at the bold and fearless but scary court room. It was ornately painted. Marble beams were neatly placed to hold the caving ceiling up as it circled into a dome. The ceiling was painted with different, beautiful colors. They warmed the room up, but didn't warm Troy. The walls were a solid white. Behind the judge hung several of his plaques and graduation certificates and above those rested a huge American flag, resembling peace and harmony among the American citizens.

His table was even pretty. It showed its wooden age with the flow of beautiful cherry-colored stripes of wood. The table was like a marble itself only carved from Earth's Carbon Dioxide breather. His papers were marked with the US Government stamps in the top right corner and his name appearing across the left corner. Many paragraphs of eyewitnesses and claims of child neglect worded themselves across these pages, something that would pull Troy deeper into the situation.

There was a very little chance Troy would win Talon back.

"All rise." The bailiff opened the door for the judge, who wore a large black robe and looked like he had seen many years, maybe even the world wars. An old geezer.

Troy rose from his seat and straightened his tie up. He checked his buttons, fly, and pants to make sure he was formal and ready to go.

"Be seated- "

The doors opened and his lawyer rushed in as people started to sit. "Sorry I'm late." He apologized and moved to Troy's table. As he opened his suitcase and pulled papers out, he muttered "Are you ready, kid?".

Troy nervously chuckled. "Uh, yeah, sure."

"This is your first court case?"

Troy nodded and gulped.

"I see." He shuffled through some papers and pulled a certain one out, handing it to Troy. "Yours to keep."

Troy gently set it aside and took in a deep gulp of air.

The judge pounded his mallet once on the small, round tablet. "Court is now in session."

"We are here today on behalf of Mr. Troy A. Bolton, who is allegedly and illegally neglecting his son, Mr. Talon B. Bolton. Today the custody of Mr. Talon B. Bolton will be decided. The charges of child neglect on Mr. Troy Bolton have been dropped due to his no contest plea." The bailiff secured the doors and crossed his arms.

"We will start out with a statement from the opposing side. Miss Wendy Reynolds, please take a seat at the stand."

Wendy quietly sat.

"Miss Reynolds, how would you describe Troy as a father when you first started to watch Talon?" The lawyer on the opposing side stood from his chair. "In detail, please."

Wendy didn't dare make eye contact with Troy. "When I first started babysitting Talon, Troy was a great father. He loved Talon more than anything. He would take him somewhere every day, whether it was the park, the dairy, the petting zoo, etc. He never physically or mentally abused Talon; he was always soft and caring towards him. Troy hated leaving Talon with me because he hated being away, but he was in college and working a full time job, so he didn't have that special time in between anymore. However, Troy was a great father and I would never say anything bad about him at that time."

"How would you describe him _after_ he began drinking?"

"He drifted off into a world that nobody could pull him out of, not even his own son. He acted like he didn't care at all. He would let Talon sit in his crib and scream for hours until I came to get him. He always said he was too busy even after he got fired and got kicked out of college. Despite Talon's cries for Troy's attention, Troy never listened. He was too deep into the alcohol."

The lawyer nodded and paced in front of the stand. "Explain to us how Talon reacted once being taken from Troy. Examples include crying, screaming, happy, sad, etc."

Wendy's eyes started to tear up. "He was so heartbroken. I have been babysitting for years, since I was ten, and I have never seen a child so heartbroken, and I've dealt with worse cases than this. He wouldn't eat, drink, sleep, or even play. He just cried and whined all day because he wanted to see Troy."

"So despite Talon's depression, Troy did not respond to this?"

She shook her head.

"No further questions."

Troy's heart began to beat rapidly as they handed her a couple tissues.

_That little bitch…_

"Mr. Bolton, please step on to the stand."

Troy obeyed and quickly took a seat in the chair.

His lawyer came to question him.

"Mr. Bolton, there is something here that a lot of people do not know about your personal life. Some people may be questioning themselves about where Talon's biological mother is. Do you know where she is?"

"Yes sir, I know."

"Where is she, Mr. Bolton."

"She was murdered on the day of Talon's birth. She didn't even get to see him."

"Tell me how this has impacted your life and Talon's life."

Troy glared at him, knowing that this was one of the questions he asked his lawyer not to bring up.

"She was my everything. I met her back when I was a senior and she was a freshman in high school. We made a few mistakes and wound up with Talon, but the time in between, we grew very, very close, although many people denied it. When she died, I sat outside her hospital room and cried for two days. I took Talon home and had no choice but to raise him without a mother. It hurts me to see him grow without his mother. Every child needs a father and mother influence. I try my best to raise him the best possible way. But even Talon could not tear me away from my old habits, which is going to clubs and having parties and everything else. It's an addiction. I have not been to any parties or clubs in several days, which is an improvement from being there 18 out of the 24 hours a day. No, there is no excuse for my drinking and partying habit, but I am willing to change for Talon."

"Would you be willing to be under house arrest, random drug tests, alcohol tests, and parenting classes to get him back?"

"I would have cameras put in my house if that's enough. And yes to all those. I am willing to do anything. A guard can sit at my door if it is requested."

"No further questions."

Troy walked back to his seat and sank into it, very scared for Talon's fate.

"I now call Talon B. Bolton to the stand."

Troy's eyes got wide. His lawyer shook his head and whispered. "This is unlawful, Troy." He stood up. "I object to Talon's testimony! He is just under the age of two! You are going to make a helpless child stand up there?"

"The opposing side has requested it."

Troy looked over at Wendy, who was contently sitting in her chair.

_How could she do that to innocent little Talon?_

The bailiff smiled at Talon as he came through the double doors to the right of the judge. He grabbed his hand. "Is it okay if you tell us some things about your daddy?"

Talon nodded. He had already been questioned several times.

The bailiff lifted Talon into the seat and boosted it up so Talon could watch over the court room.

He spotted Troy.

"Daddy!" He yelled and jumped off the chair. He hadn't seen Troy in at leasta week and a half, since the date was suspended.

In his desperate attempt to reach Troy, he flung himself down the stairs and tried to run towards Troy. The bailiff caught him and reassured him that he was safe and that nobody would hurt him. But Talon, being the strong soul he was, screamed and kicked and punched to try to get to Troy.

Once the bailiff finally calmed him down, he was in a crying frenzy. He sobbed and whimpered about his daddy until finally the other lawyer stood up.

"I'm Brandon, Talon, nice to meet you." Brandon held his hand out to hysterical Talon.

Talon smacked his hand and started crying harder, curling himself into a ball in the chair.

"It's okay, Talon. Nobody is here to hurt you."

"Daddy!" He sobbed and pointed to Troy. "My daddy!"

Troy couldn't help but let tears fall down his cheek. He could do nothing about it. He could not comfort Talon.

"Listen Talon, does your daddy love you?" The lawyer said quietly to Talon.

Talon nodded as his cries got worse.

"Do you love your daddy?"

Another nod.

"Do you want to be with your daddy or someone else?"

Talon couldn't comprehend the question. So his crying turned hysterical.

"Objection!" Troy's lawyer stood. "This is outrageous! You cannot ask a question to a two year old about how he wants to live the rest of his life!"

"Accepted. Please, withdraw."

"Yes your honor." The other lawyer said and withdrew as told.

Talon was taken out.

"We'll take a short recess and after I will decide Mr. Talon B. Bolton's custody." His mallet hit the circle tablet three times.

…..

Troy nervously sat as the judge sat at his desk once again.

"I have came to a consensus with my colleagues. As of the custody of Mr. Talon Beau Bolton, it will be relinquished to Child Protective Services as of today's date. No further contact with Mr. Troy Bolton will be allowed." His mallet hit the tablet.

His mallet hit Troy's heart.


	44. Deprived Of A Man

_ If I lay here, if I just lay here…_

_ Would you lie with me and just forget the world?_

_ Forget what we're told before we get too old._

_ Show me your garden that's bursting into life._

_ All that I am, all that I ever was…_

_ Is here in your perfect eyes, they're all I can see._

_ I don't know where, confused about how as well…_

_Just know that these things will never change for us at all._

_If I lay here, if I just lay here…_

_Would you lie with me and just forget the world?_

The radio droned on as Troy sat quietly in the corner. He was blindsided by the fact that he was slowly killing himself.

With a bottle of Xanax sitting beside him and some heavy vodka, he drank pills and alcohol like they were best friends.

_Those were his only friends…_

Troy Bolton's life was officially over.

No more bills, house, parents, friends, college, Talon…

Everything would be gone in a matter of hours. To Troy, that wasn't fast enough.

He wanted to die in a matter of seconds.

He was slowly overdosing, causing his body's vital organs to shut down one by one.

Kidneys, stomach, intestines, liver, lungs, and soon after, the last beat of his faint heart would rise up and then stop forever. He would be gone forever. He didn't care if the autopsy people cut him up and threw pieces of his body all over the place. He didn't care if he had a funeral or if everyone just forgot about him.

He could care less if they fed him to the sharks.

Troy shivered and looked around his apartment, which was spotless and neat. It hadn't been wrecked by a baby for months. So it was perfectly clean.

_Let's waste time chasing cars._

_Around our heads._

_I need your grace to remind me to find my own._

Suddenly, music began to overlap and skip. The songs became mixed, and it suddenly shut off. It died.

He took another swig of his vodka and shoved another four pills into his mouth.

His bloodshot eyes were so droopy that he was finally ready to make it to the next world. He didn't care if he was with Gabriella or not. All he cared about was dying and to get away from the cruel world that he had lived in for many, many years.

His whole life of 21 years.

He dumped the rest of the pills in his hand. He counted them each, one by one, valuing them individually.

He had a grand total of 7 left.

Without any words, he dumped them into his gaping hole, swallowed them dry, and let out a deep sigh that was locked inside him.

He knew he was doomed now. He had taken at least 35 Xanax, which he knew would definitely kill him.

He waited for death to overcome him.

He waited until the sun rose into the dark sky and lit it to a pretty orange/red/pink color.

Louisiana was beautiful in the morning; there was no doubt.

It had a beautiful sunset that just awed everyone who stared upon it, watching the Earth's heat source rise into the sky and lit the world like a lamp.

He watched as his body's motor started sputtering. His heart skipped beats, and suddenly, slowed…

His tired body rested on the floor. He held a picture of Talon in his arms, along with the beautiful Teddiursa bear that used to be Gabriella's.

He closed his eyes.

The world became deprived of a man named Troy Bolton.


	45. Hospitalized

_"We've got 'em, we've got 'em!"_

Blinding lights flashed that made eyes irritated.

Troy inhaled a deep breath, and his eyes shot open. They quickly shut as he winced and covered them.

_"Troy, are you okay? Troy!"_

He groaned in pain and shook his head.

Muffled sirens raided his clogged ears. They soon began to get louder.

"Am I in heaven yet?" He asked groggily.

"No, you're in an ambulance." The voice said slowly.

Troy shook his head and sobbed. "Shit… "

"Were you planning on dying?"

"Yeah… " Troy said. "Don't think I'm an addict, because I'm not… "

"I understand. You have a lot going on, I hear."

He nodded.

"Things get better."

At the hospital, a tube was shoved down his nose and they began pumping his stomach. He could see a little stomach bile, but there were massive amounts of blue liquid rushing through it. The Xanax.

The heart monitor was beeping like normal, and his breathing was normal.

"How did someone find me?"

"I think your neighbor noticed that you had not left your house like you usually do every morning to go get a coffee." The doctor played with a couple buttons on the monitor and scribbled some things down on his clipboard, then rearranged the wires again.

Troy felt as if he had failed everyone. He failed his parents, he failed Talon, he failed Gabriella. He even failed himself.

He never wanted anything bad to happen.

He just wanted Gabriella and Talon back.

"Mr. Bolton, may I suggest that you go see a psychologist?"

Troy raised his eyebrow and chuckled. "A psychologist? No way."

"I know things have been tough, but a psychologist can help you work out those problems. "

"I don't want a psychologist. I want to get out of here."

"It won't be for a while, Mr. Bolton. You'll just have to deal with it."

Troy sighed. "Well then, just leave me alone."

"As you wish. If you need anything, just press the nurse button."

He slipped out of the room quietly.

In between beeps of the monitor and the pumping of the tube, Troy's mind hummed about how he would be able to get out of the hospital quickly.

Lie about taking medication? Tell them that someone drugged him?

It wouldn't work.

They already knew that he was an addict.

But, on the bright side, he knew that he would spend a couple weeks of hell in rehab and then be back in the world again.

Before he knew it, there was a tapping sound on the door, which got a little louder and then stopped. A few seconds passed. The knocking began again.

Was someone outside, or was it someone's bratty kid just trying to disturb the patients?

"Come in." Troy said with a clear, harsh tone, as if to scare away the kid who was doing it.

It wasn't a kid.

The door creaked open very, very slowly and then suddenly came to brutal stop. Voices rose, declined, and the door started to open again.

His room became filled with more than one body, two of which he didn't want to see.

She stood there, tears in her eyes as she stepped inside the door. She was followed by he who was trying to comfort his shocked wife, but at the same time, still very upset about his son.

_His son…_

"Look at him, Jack." She sobbed and whispered at the same time.

"I know… " He didn't really know what to say.

"Why are you here?" Troy sat up a little to be more formal.

"We got a call from the hospital. You obviously had us down as your first contacts in case of emergency." Jack grumbled.

Troy knew he was in some major trouble.

"Honey… " Tears poured down Kay's cheeks as she began slowly walking towards Troy. "Look at you… "

"Mom, I'm fine." Troy insisted.

"You're not fine! You are in the hospital for overdosing!"

"Yeah, so what?"

"What would ever make you do such a thing?"

"I'm under a load of stress right now."

"That doesn't give you the right to just kill yourself!" She sat on the edge of his bed. "Sweetheart, why didn't you give us a call?"

Jack sat down in the chair, unzipped his coat, and sighed, looking at the wall.

Troy grasped the blankets between his fingers. "I'm a failure. You wanted me to be the awesome superstar football player, or the doctor who has the Ph.D and owns a huge hospital, and I'm just not that."

"What do you mean? Troy, we just want you to be yourself. We want you to get through college and get a job. We want you to be an independent man and be able to provide for yourself and Talon- "

Troy broke into tears as soon as Talon's name came from her mouth.

"What's wrong?" She grabbed his hand. "Are you just upset because of all this?" Kay gently pushed his hair back.

"I lost Talon… " Troy sobbed loudly and shook his head as tears fell off his cheeks.

"Troy Bolton!" Jack stood up. "How in the world did you _lose_ your son?"

"I… " He couldn't even speak. He was so choked up with tears.

"Damn it!" Jack couldn't take the stress. He opened the door and slammed it behind him.

Kay grabbed both of Troy's hands and looked into his eyes. "Tell me what's been going on, or else your father is going to choke himself with pain."

Troy could barely speak.

"Come on, just tell me."

"I don't want to." He said, turning his head away.

"I won't be mad." Kay reassured.

"Yes you will!"

"No I won't, I promise."

Troy turned himself away from her.

"I have a horrible drinking problem and I wasn't watching Talon. He walked out my apartment door and fell down three flights of stairs. He shattered his leg. I felt so horrible, mom… But his babysitter called Child Services and told them that I was neglecting Talon, because I was, and they took him away."

"Oh my… " She shook her head. "You should have just picked up the phone and called!"

Troy shook his head also. "It's been going on for a long time. Like right when Talon turned about three months old… "

"Are they going to send you to a rehabilitation facility?"

He nodded.

"Maybe you would have a chance to get him back if you proved you were an okay father."

"Mom, it's hopeless."

"Don't say that. Nothing is hopeless."

Troy sobbed and curled himself up. "I don't have anything anymore… "

"You have your father and I, Troy. You always will." She stroked his hair. "We're here for you, sweetheart- "

"Just leave me alone… " He rolled over and sobbed, curling himself into a tighter ball. "I don't want your help or anyone else's."

Kay's eyes filled with tears. "You're stuck with us, Troy. We're your parents whether you like it or not."

"I DON'T CARE ABOUT YOU!" He yelled as he buried his head into his pillow. "I LOST MY SON! I LOST GABRIELLA! I LOST MY LIFE! EVERYTHING IS GONE!"

Kay shook her head. "You're much stronger than this, Troy… I know you are… "

"I'm a fucking wreck… "

"Sweetheart, you have made nothing but a little mistake. It can be fixed."

"What? With 40 days of rehab? With the rest of my life paying for what I did when I was 21?"

"Things get better." She wiped her eyes. "It will get better."

Hopefully, she was right.


	46. Daddy's Arms

Kay was right at first.

Troy stepped proudly out of the hospital. He had been there for 60 days, completed alcoholic courses and drug courses, received treatment, and was still recovering from shakes and shivers. But, overall, he was okay.

Today was the day.

He didn't know if the day would ever come.

He thought he had screwed his entire life up. Lost Talon, lost Gabriella, lost his friends, his career, everything.

But he was back in college. School was resumed. He was now studying to be a Marine Biologist. He loved his work. He loved himself. He felt loved.

But one thing was missing from his life.

Talon.

He knew Talon wasn't coming back. It killed him. It absolutely shattered his heart. He felt like someone had just crushed his entire life and stomped on his body.

It didn't matter.

Troy stood on the sidewalk of the rehab center.

He waited patiently, watching the cars, waiting for a familiar and certain car. It was a jet-black car with shining rims and chromed grills, door handles, and even its wipers were chromed. He loved that car.

After waiting about five minutes, he began to think that the car wasn't coming. He perched himself on the sidewalk, jiggling his leg, his heart racing. He wanted that car to come. He didn't want to wait forever to see that car. He had seen that car many times that month, several times in the parking lot and several times as it pulled out of the parking lot. He also remembered the lady that drove it.

She had sleek, long blonde hair pulled back into a ponytail. It usually was in a bun, but sometimes it wasn't. She dressed in a black-suede looking shirt and skirt, with clicking high heels that touched the ground lightly. The familiar sound bounced through the air and to Troy's ears. That was how he knew she was coming.

He had everything ready. He had been living half time at the rehab center and half time at his own apartment for about a month. For three of those weeks, he had been moving his apartment into a different place. A house. Big enough for many people and some beautiful pets that he was soon going to adopt.

He had already adopted one.

Marley.

She was still young at heart. Now four years old, she still skipped around like she was still a wild pup who had just met her new owners. She loved Troy and everything about him, including the way he rubbed her belly and scratched behind her triangular ears. Gabriella's mom and dad were pleased to have the house to themselves again.

But even Marley wasn't enough to please Troy.

He just wanted to hold his baby boy.

Once again, he looked out into the ocean of cars, scanning for a certain black car with chrome.

There were a few, but not _the_ car.

Before he knew it, he saw the car.

He stood up.

His heart pounded tremendously. He couldn't hold it back.

The door opened, and two doors shut.

He saw a small bodied woman step out.

She was knocked over by a blonde-haired, blue eyed little boy who looked identical to his daddy.

"DADDY!" Talon screamed at the top of his lungs and flew towards Troy. His short little legs didn't stop him from running full speed.

Troy scooped Talon in his arms and pulled him into a tight hug. Tears fell down his cheeks. His little boy, the only thing he had and the only thing he wanted was in his arms.

And he would never let go again.


	47. Bus Ride

PLEASE READ BEFORE YOU READ CHAPTER!

(A/N: I have a quick question. Do you think I should put pictures of what Troy's kids look like? And what the animals look like? I would post the links at the bottom of my profile. Because I really have no way to describe them to you guys. Let me know what you think in the reviews.)

Okay, now you may read the chapter. :)

The Autumn leaves swept over Troy's feet as he waited at the bus stop. He hugged a sleeping Talon close to him and kissed the top of his head. He moved his dark blonde hair out of his face and looked around for an oncoming bus. But, nothing came but cold chills and freezing wind. Talon, being a trooper, huddled close to his daddy and shivered a little, but didn't complain about the cold wind brushing against him.

A month after Troy got out, he got sideswiped by something that had completely and totally devastated his life.

In a drunken state, Troy went bar hopping, clubbing, drinking parties, etc. He had slept with many girls, prostitutes, and was living the life of a partier. What he didn't realize at the time was that while sleeping with girls, he never used protection. And nothing else happened but what he never would have expected.

On September 20th, he was called in for over 5 DNA tests to see if he fathered some of these girls' children. Four were suing child support. Troy was completely and totally astonished. Never in his life had he thought he was capable of sleeping with so many girls at one time, let alone fathering all of their kids.

So Troy willingly took the tests. He waited almost 3 days for results to come back. Sitting by the phone, he received a call back from the clinic.

4 out of the 5 weren't his.

One was.

And because of that, Troy cried all night, wondering how he could have ever done such a thing, and why he had to be in such a horrible place with a girl he barely knew.

Luckily, that girl didn't want Child Support. She didn't want anything from Troy. Literally.

So, she handed over the baby without saying another word. Full custody. No rights. She didn't want to see that baby ever again. Of course, she was a prostitute. And still, while all this happened right in front of his face, he still couldn't believe what was going on.

And now Troy had with two kids, one he didn't know existed and one he just got back a month earlier. An almost 3 month old baby, and a two year old. Both were Troy's worst nightmares.

He struggled, but he still made it.

Although he had made two huge mistakes, one with Talon and one with his new baby, he couldn't back out and not be their father. He had to step up and be there for them.

Even if it meant taking a college and work leave to do it.

Since he had just taken his car to the shop and had no ride home, he had to take the bus back to his house.

He hated riding the bus.

Talon still had a broken leg from when he fell down the stairs. It cracked again, not from falling or from his own fault, but it healed incorrectly in the first place. So once again, the leg had a tiny crack. It still caused Talon loads of pain.

One thing Troy did love was the fact that Talon did everything he could to help Troy out, whether it was with the baby or picking up his toys on his own, turning off the TV at night, putting dishes in the sink… Talon loved helping Troy, with a broken leg or not.

But Talon couldn't help Troy with the thing that he needed the most help with.

Troy's newest baby was born on July 12th. He named the baby Lyle Flynn Bolton. The first name came from his own name vocabulary, and the middle came from Gabriella's favorite names list. Bryn was one of her favorite names for girls, but he changed the B to F and added another n. Hence, the name Flynn came to mind.

He loved Lyle like he loved Talon. The only thing Troy couldn't get around was the fact that Lyle's mother was a prostitute, somebody who didn't care about their kid or their life, but someone who cared about sex and money. The lady didn't look as old as Troy, either. She looked fairly young, about 15 or 16. He felt horrible for ever doing that to such a girl, and to be honest, it really wasn't his fault. But he still blamed himself. He blamed himself for everything, which is where the blame should lie, but the one thing he blamed himself for the most part was Gabriella's death, which wasn't his fault. He wished God would give Gabriella a second chance, so that she could see her son, be able to hold and love him, and to watch him grow up to become a man, a better one than Troy. He wished that she would grow back to him again, and they would get married and walk along the yellow brick road, with many of their little kids running circles around them. He wanted to be able to kiss her and hold her while they slept side by side in bed. He wanted to wake up in the morning and listen to her moan and groan about going to work and getting their kids off to school.

He wanted Gabriella back, and there was no doubt to that.

The bus roared to a stop as Troy's mind woke from his daydreaming. He grabbed Lyle, found a seat, and set Lyle there, and went back for Talon, who helplessly waited with a broken leg. He sat in his seat, Talon on his lap and Leland beside him. The bus screeched and quivered, then started off down the lonely street. There were only about 20 people on the bus, which wasn't a lot, and most of them were busily talking. Troy tightened one arm around Talon and the other held Leland's carseat.

"Lyle?" Talon looked down at Leland, who was soundly sleeping.

"Yeah, that's Lyle."

"Sleepy?"

Troy looked over for a second. "He's sleeping."

"Kisses?"

The bus passed the intersection of Dale Road and Byerly Drive. They were on the right path.

Troy sunk back into his seat with a sigh. "What did you say?"

"Kisses." Talon smiled a little.

"You can't give him kisses when he's sleeping, Tal."

Talon pouted and crossed his arms.

Troy fell into Talon's wrath.

"Oh alright. But I have to get a picture of you kissing him, okay?"

Talon grinned with satisfaction and leaned towards Lyle with his lips all puckered up. Troy held his phone up.

"Okay, give him a kiss."

As Talon's lips touched Lyle's forehead, Troy snapped a picture and sent it to his mom and dad, tagging it as "Kisses on a bus ride home".

Talon looked at Troy with a happy face. "Lemme see!"

"Hold on… " Troy found the picture and turned the phone so Talon could see.

Talon's face was completely priceless.

The bus screeched to a stop, its doors swung open, and in came a tall man with dark hair and dark brown eyes. He was wearing nothing other than a OSU jersey and a pair of tattered, old jeans. He carried with him a helmet and a football, both signed by the New Orleans Saints head football coach.

He sat across from Troy, checked his watch, and sighed.

He was about Troy's age.

The man happened to look over at Troy.

"Troy? Troy Bolton?" He said in a light tone.

Troy raised an eyebrow. "Who are you?"

"Jake Stantley!" He turned in his seat with a big, toothy smile on his face. "Do you remember me?"

"Not really- "

"High school? Football?"

A light bulb finally flickered in Troy's head.

"Oh, Jake!" Troy laughed. "I've been through a lot lately, sorry I didn't remember you."

"It's fine." He shook his head. "You don't look a day older!"

"Either do you!" Troy turned towards him. "Are you still playing football?"

"Oh yeah. I'm playing for OSU right now. How about you?"

"Don't have time to." Troy chuckled.

"Don't have time to?"

"My boys."

Jake pointed. "Those are your kids?"

"Yeah."

"Wow, I never imagined that you would have kids." Jake laughed. "Never in my life."

"Well, I have two. Both boys." He pulled Talon closer to his chest when he began to slip off his knees.

"Who's their mom? Where is she?"

Troy bit his lip. "Talon, this one." He pointed to Talon. "His mom is Gabriella, do you remember her? She was a freshman the last time you saw her. She had dark hair, brown eyes, short, had straight A's… "

"Oh, the girl you got pregnant back in high school? That girl?"

"Yeah, that's her."

"And then Lyle's mom, who is over here, isn't in the picture."

"Sounds like that was a fun custody battle."

"It went unrealistically really well. Nothing happened. She handed him right over. Didn't want anything to do with him."

"Awh, that sucks."

"It sure does." Troy sighed. "Now I'm stuck as a single dad with two kids on my hands. One for each hand." He scoffed. "There's probably another on the way somewhere else." Troy joked.

"That one on your lap looks just like you." He smiled a little.

"Oh, I know. He doesn't look anything like Gabi. But he has her heart and soul. That's one good thing that came out of that situation."

He nodded. "I'm sorry for your loss, Troy. I really am."

Troy sighed. "It's been rough."

"I would imagine so."

The bus halted to a stop, and a couple more people got on. As soon as it started again, Troy started talking.

"So, why are you down here?"

Jake played with the stitches on the football. "We were here for the Saints' game today. And we're staying here until Halloween. Then, we're going to Atlanta for trick-or-treating. I'll be here for a while. Why are you down here?"

"I _live_ down here."

"Oh, really?"

"Yeah. I've been down here for over two years now."

"Do you go to college down here?"

"Yep. I permanently live down here."

"I thought you would have stayed in Ohio." Jake chuckled a little and looked back up. "And played for OSU."

"I played only for the best, you know that."

The bus stopped once again.

Troy got up, knowing it was his drop off. He grabbed Lyle's carseat and hoisted Talon on his hip. "It was nice talking to you, Jake."

"You too!" Jake grinned. "We should hang out sometime. Give me your number."

Troy sighed and jogged is memory for his phone number. "Um… "

Once he finally remembered, he said it out loud as Jake put it in his phone.

"Alright. I'll see you later, Troy."

"Bye Jake."

Troy got off the bus, and watched it pull away. The tires squeaked.

He would probably never see Jake again.


	48. Murderer Comes Close

READ BEFORE YOU READ THE CHATPER!

__(A/N: I posted pictures of Talon and Lyle at the bottom of my profile. Just copy and paste them into your browser. :) Now, this is where the story begins to pick up and things start to come together. By the looks of this, it shouldn't be too long before you find out who Gabriella's murderer is. Maybe 5-10 chapters. :) Gabriella's perspective will soon change, too. :D)

Now you can read. :)

_All the things I still remember, summers never looked the same. Years go by and time just seems to fly, but the memories remain. In the middle of September, we still play out in the rain. Nothing to lose but everything to gain. Reflecting now on how things could've been, it was worth it in the end._

_Now it all seems so clear, there's nothing left to fear. So we made our way by finding what was real. Now the days are so long, last summer's moved on. Reach for something that's already gone…_

Troy gently rocked back in forth in Lyle's rocking chair, watching Lyle's eyes as they fought an endless war to stay open. Blinking, he made an honest effort to fight the sleep off. But, sleep won in the end. He was tired. Lyle had a long day, from drinking bottles, sleeping, changings, listening to music, sleeping, playing with Talon, and back to square one. It was his bedtime. There was no reason to argue that.

At the moment he closed his eyes, Troy silently stood up. Talon stepped into the room, and Troy automatically shushed him. Talon grinned, placing his fingers on his lips as if to copy Troy. He tiptoed in and gently shut the door behind him. He waited quietly for Troy to give him the signal to talk.

Troy placed Lyle in his crib gently. He covered him with a light blanket, turned on his lighted fish-aquarium, and turned off the overhead light. He turned to Talon and pointed to the door.

Talon opened his mouth to complain, but Troy quickly shushed him up again.

He stood there with his arms folded and a pouting face.

Troy opened the drawer and grabbed Talon's pajamas, a diaper, his slippers, and a bath towel. Talon automatically got excited and bolted out of the room, happy to get a bath. Troy chuckled a little and shut the drawer, walked out of the room, and shut the door.

"Tubbie?" Talon said excitedly.

Troy chuckled. "What do you get every night, Talon? A haircut?"

"A tubbie!" He grinned and ran towards the bathroom.

"You are one crazy kid." Troy chuckled and walked towards the bathroom. When he got there, Talon was desperately taking off his clothes, although he couldn't, and was whining because he wanted to be in the tub so badly.

"Okay, okay!" Troy set the things down and knelt down by Talon.

Once Troy got him in the bathtub, and he was content, he set the toilet lid down and sat down. He could only sit on the hard floor for so long. As Talon messed with bubbles and many toys, Troy got his phone out as he heard a text coming through.

His mom.

_So how's everything going?_

Troy texted back.

_Busy. I just put Lyle to bed and Talon's in the tub._

_Oh. Sounds like fun. How is Lyle doing?_

_Perfect. He's the perfect baby. Doesn't cry much at all. He starting to smile and laugh now like you wouldn't believe. And Talon loves Lyle to death. He's so interested. He wants to know why he cries, why he needs bottles, when he goes to sleep, wants to be in the middle of everything._

_That's how you were every time someone brought a baby over. You were into everything. Wanted to know how everything worked._

_Well I guess Talon takes after me more than I expected._

_You got that right._

Troy chuckled.

_Well, I have to get Talon out of the tub and into bed. I'll talk to you tomorrow, mom. Love you and goodnite._

He turned his phone off and stood up. "Hey Talon, how about you sleep with me tonight? How does that sound?"

Talon was battling sleep, just like Lyle had just minutes before. His eyes were droopy and he could barely sit up.

Troy grabbed a towel, wrapped him in it, and carried him off to his room, where he dressed him and threw his slippers in the corner. His towel went in the laundry basket.

While Talon climbed into bed, Troy walked back into Lyle's room. He wasn't asleep, of course. He was staring at his fish tank in awe, like he had never seen it before.

"Alright, I know you're just dying for me to pick you up." Troy said, causing Lyle to look over at him. A little smile came across his face, and he stretched his legs out as if to make an excuse up for why he wasn't sleeping. But Troy knew better than to follow his cutesy little tricks. He reached over the crib and pulled him out of it.

"You know what sucks?" Troy said, holding Lyle up to his face. "Talon doesn't look too much like his mommy, who I loved very much, and you look a lot like me, but you look like your mommy too, who I don't like at all."

Lyle was adorable. He was even cuter than Talon when he was just tiny. Lyle had light brown hair and round eyes. They were curved a tiny bit at the end, but made him look cuter. His eyes were getting pretty dark, but he still loved them, although they weren't Troy or Talon's blue.

"Why don't I just take you to bed with Talon and I?"

Lyle's lips curved into a tiny smile, and he stared at his daddy with beaming eyes.

"You're going to have girls all over you, Lyle." Troy chuckled a little and grabbed a few of Lyle's things out of his crib. He also grabbed the bottle that sat on the dresser. "But I have to teach you how to be a lady's man, first. Just like Talon. You two will have girls fighting for you, if you guys inherit my good looks."

Troy heard a slight knock at the door while he was tucking Talon and Lyle into his bed. He jolted upwards, knowing that something had to be wrong. It wasn't a police knock, which was loud and obnoxious. It wasn't a normal person knock, which was exceptionally normal, nor was it a child's knock. It was an anxious knock, like someone was frightened or scared.

He glanced at Talon. "Keep an eye on Lyle. Make sure he doesn't roll off the bed."

He nodded.

Troy left the door open while he rushed to the door. He unlocked it and pulled it open.

Nobody was there.

He looked left and right, up and then down…

He found nothing other than a baby carseat with a newborn baby in it.

"Jesus Christ." Troy shook his head. "Those fucking prostitutes insisting I'm their kids' father." He said to himself.

He sighed and picked the carseat. He carried it into his house, when he set it on the couch.

"Is this thing even real?" He said to himself. The baby didn't move. It didn't even look like it was breathing.

He touched the cheeks.

They were warm, a little too warm.

After a minute of searching around for notes or phone numbers along the pockets of the carseat, he heard a tiny whine, and the baby stretched its arms out.

"Orphan… " He sighed. "People are so idiotic. I would never leave my kid at someone's door."

He sat there for a minute, wondering what he could possibly do to find who this baby's parents were and return it. Hopefully, the father would take it.

Troy suddenly heard the baby's stomach growl slightly.

"I wonder how long it's been since you last ate." Troy stood up. "I've got newborn formula in the kitchen."

He made the baby a bottle and picked it up out of the carseat.

He noticed a couple sheets of paper.

He set the bottle down and pulled the papers out of the carseat. He opened the first one, which was a note.

_Troy Bolton-_

_I hope I never see you again. Unfortunately, after a couple drinks at the bar, we slept together and made this baby. Well, I don't want it. I need to start fresh and live my life the way it was supposed to be lived. You take care of the baby because I know you'll love this baby just like you love Talon and Lyle. I have a DNA test to prove you're the father, so don't freak out and think that it's just someone tricking you._

He raised his eyebrow and took the second piece of paper.

It was a DNA test. It didn't have the mothers' name, but it did have Troy's.

He looked back at the DNA test.

On the back, there was a last note from the person who dropped the baby off.

_PS: If you decide not to take care of this baby, and you decide to just dump the baby in someone else's hands, then what happened to Gabriella will happen to Talon and Lyle._


	49. Aubrey

Troy started panicking.

He locked his windows, his door, and he pulled Talon and Lyle into the living room and had them camp out on a blanket. He set the baby on the blanket with them, covered it up with blankets, and grabbed a phone.

He called the number for the hospital listed down on the DNA test.

Anxiously, he waited on the phone. The clock ticked, the hand seemed to take forever. He broke into a sweat.

His body was on overdrive.

A few rings, and nothing.

He dialed again.

More ticking.

More sweat.

Now shakes.

"Hi, this is Baton Rouge Community Hospital- "

"I have a DNA test here that says I'm the father of this baby that was dropped off at my house. There's a note and everything. I have no clue who this person is or why they dropped this baby off at my house. The person also said they would hurt my two kids if I tried to give this baby to someone else."

"Okay, okay, calm down, sir. You should have called 911."

"I don't have time for 911! I need to know if this kid is mine!"

"Let me transfer you to the genetics part of the facility- "

"JUST TELL ME- "

A happy, delighted song came on. It was like elevator music.

He looked over at Talon, Lyle, and the baby, who were all sleeping peacefully on the floor.

"This is Baton Rouge Community hospital, genetics center."

"I need to validate a DNA test." Troy said frantically. "Like… Right now."

"Okay, give me the ID- "

"No, I need to come and take a DNA test. I need results right now."

"I'm sorry but- "

"It's an emergency!" Troy said. "Please believe me! I can call my neighbor and borrow her car for tonight!"

"We can rush the test, but I don't know exactly how long it will take."

"I'll be there in fifteen minutes."

…..

Troy held Talon in his arms and the baby's carseat was on the floor in front of him while he waited at the genetics department of the hospital. He left Lyle with his neighbor for the night, but Talon threw a fit when he couldn't go with daddy. So of course, Troy took Talon.

The seat was cold and hard, and the clock seemed to tick very slowly. His heart beat matched the ticking of the clock. Although it was cold in the hospital, he was sweating bullets, thinking about how anything else could possibly go wrong. Talon was sleeping peacefully, like an angel, and the baby was sleeping soundly also. He couldn't find himself to believe the baby was his. Who in their right mind would think that a child that showed up on their doorstep was theirs?

A couple doctors walked by, and Troy began to wonder how long it would take the doctors to come up with an answer. He had already been there for three hours. The baby was due to wake up any time, and then he would end up getting attached, etc…

So he waited a long and endless journey to find out whether or not this doorstep baby was his.

Finally, the doctor stepped outside his office with a stack of papers in hand. He looked at Troy with a funny face.

"I think that's the quickest DNA test anyone has ever requested." He said and handed Troy the papers.

"Thank you!" Troy said and flipped through the papers.

His anxiety skyrocketed through the roof. He didn't know what to expect at all. He thought the world might as well end if the baby was his, because then he had three kids and a stalker.

Troy's life really sucked at the moment.

He almost dropped the papers. He looked down at the baby.

"This doesn't make any sense… "

Troy's kids consisted of the following:

A two year old boy, a three month old boy, and a 17 hour old girl.

This little girl he suddenly knew was special.

She was very, _very_ special.

She was born on October 10th, 2010. 10/10/10. Born at 10 in the morning, 10 minutes after.

That was _Gabriella's_ birthday.

He stared at the little girl in the carseat, astonished. She was a replica of Gabriella, without the dark hair. The cheeks, chin, fingers, toes, ears, eyes, everything was Gabriella.

Troy couldn't believe it. Was it reincarnation? Was it Gabriella's sign to tell Troy that she was okay? Was it just pure luck?

He didn't care how it happened. He knew that he now had a miniature Gabriella on his hands.

He knew she would grow up, acting like Gabriella, talking like Gabriella, learning like Gabriella, and being Gabriella.

He knew what Gabriella wanted to name their daughter.

Ainsley.

She had always talked about Ainsley, even before Talon was born. She wanted the baby to have the same initials as Troy, but he wanted to name the baby Leah.

Then, she wanted the baby to have the initials ARB. Already Really Beautiful, she would say. She was so naive back then, being only fifteen. She loved the world and wanted it to turn on a dime just for her. But, he also knew what she truly wanted to name their daughter. She had settled for Ainsley, since Troy's parents didn't like the name she chose.

Aubrey.

Aubrey Rae Bolton. ARB. Already Really Beautiful.

Thus, the little replica of Gabriella became Aubrey Rae Bolton, Gabriella's dream daughter.


	50. Revelations Of Her Death

She sat within fourteen feet of her door, gazing upon it. It was painted in silvery-pink roses and lilies. Beautiful, lily-pad like platforms rested below the flowers, with tiny dragonflies on it that buzzed around and. The background color was light blue, like the sky, and faded into a light reddish color. The room was decorated pink with green poison oak vines going around the room. Blood specks began to form along the vines. As the vines met above her bed, there was a razor blade and a puddle of blood. A name was present on the blade, a name she hated and despised, a name that she couldn't stand. She didn't know the name, but knew that the name had killed her. And she hated it.

Gabriella still hadn't learned to live with her death or her murderer for that matter.

All she lived with was her guilt. How she left Troy to raise Talon on his own, how she left Talon without a mother, how she betrayed Troy by dying… She hated herself so much that if she could die twice, she would. It didn't matter, because she was already dead.

And she deserved it.

She had been without Troy for over two years. She always questioned why she got closer to him over time, and vice versa? Was fate supposed to bring them back to each other?

She had no idea what the future would hold.

Gabriella stood to her feet from sitting on her bed. She took baby steps, one by one, towards the wall. On her wall were many pictures held up by tape. Pictures of Talon, Troy, her dogs, cats, and everything else she dearly loved. She even had pictures of a baby, this baby she held in her arms only once. She never held Talon. What baby did she hold?

She held their second baby. Gabriella and Troy's second baby. Lyle? No. Lyle was a product of Gabriella's anger against Troy. How he could betray her, how he could betray Talon. She pulled strings, and a prostitute got pregnant. _That_ was how Lyle happened.

But Gabriella and Troy's second baby happened in a different way.

When Troy first saw Gabriella exactly a year ago, they couldn't stay away from each other. They had to be together. They had to be inside one another.

If she was alive, that day, she would have become pregnant. Again.

But since she wasn't alive, she ended up pregnant with a baby in Apex. She carried that baby for almost three months. That baby was born alive. Everything was born in between in Apex. It was dead, but alive in Apex. _He_ took it away from her as soon as she had it. She didn't even get to hold it. He gave her a choice. He could either send the baby to heaven, where nothing ever comes back to life, or He could send it to someone on Earth.

She had those two options.

And she chose the second one. At least she would be able to watch over her baby, forever and always.

She got to hold her baby one time. It was a little baby girl that looked exactly like herself. She was beautiful. Gabriella loved her so much, just after seeing her for a few short minutes. She named that baby Aubrey Rae Bolton, exactly what she wanted to name Talon, since they thought he was a girl before he was born. And after giving her a kiss on the forehead goodbye, Aubrey Rae Bolton was sent to someone as their forever gift, a gift from above.

And Gabriella hated that someone.

But now, she couldn't hate that person, because she was carrying Gabriella and Troy's little girl.

From that day forward, she watched her baby grow inside of someone else, someone who was scared to death and didn't know anything about babies.

She watched that person give birth to her child, her little girl, and hate it as if it were a product of a rape.

And she soon hated that person again.

She watched her daughter, smothered in love by her daddy and her two big brothers who loved her very much. She needed her mommy, just like Talon did, and even Lyle, who didn't really have a mother. They needed their mommy.

She loved all three of her boys, and now, her little girl.

She loved them so much that she died inside. She wanted to see them so badly. She wanted to hold her babies one last time, to kiss them and hug them close to her. She wanted to tell them how much she loved them and that she would see them up in heaven.

She wanted to be alive…

She touched a picture of Talon, who was just a little baby. He was barely seven months old. He was crawling around, with a happy smile on his face. His daddy chased him, trying to grab his feet.

Troy was such a good father…

And then Lyle, who although was a product of her hate, who had also grown on her. He was adorable.

And now little Aubrey. She would grow up surrounded by three boys. God only knows how she'll turn out. A tomboy, a goth, an emo… But she would love her anyway. She would love her, Talon, and Lyle like she had never loved anyone.

She felt a couple tears roll down her cheek. She quickly wiped them away. Nobody cried in Apex. Nobody was unhappy in Apex. Nobody hated Apex…

But Gabriella did…

She couldn't let go of Troy. That was what kept her in Apex. She watched down on him, watched him at home. He had the boys there, along with Aubrey and Marley. Marley, being her curious self, was all over the new baby. Talon held Aubrey, and Troy held Lyle. Lyle was crazy. He had never saw another baby, and was thrilled at the sight of Aubrey. She was a little younger than he was, but he still loved her. She was fascinating to him. Troy showed Talon how to feed a baby and how to hold her. He learned quickly. He was so smart, just like his mommy, and athletic like his daddy. Aubrey was quickly taking after Gabriella, acting just like Gabriella in silly ways. And Troy stood strong through all of it. He kept his sanity and spent every waking moment loving and caring for his three kids…

But where's mommy?

Where does mommy fit in the picture?

Because of one person, mommy's dead.

Mommy's dead forever.

She can't come back.

Gabriella sobbed and looked at her door with the flowers, dragonflies, and lily pads.

How was she really murdered?

The murderer had hidden in a swamp, under lily pads.

Waited for Troy to leave the room.

Dried itself off. Touched a poison oak vine.

Went up to the room via ladder.

Opened the window.

Got inside.

Grabbed Gabriella in her weak state and killed her, then framed Gabriella for her own death.

Your room on Earth paints a picture of your life.

In Apex, you room paints a picture of your death.

You either learn to live with your death, or you fear it even more.

She couldn't contain her tears.

She knew who her murderer was.

It had been two years of mystery. Two years of suspense. Two years of hell…

Two years of being kept from her son, Troy, her life…

Her room melted.

The walls fell into a thick pool of blood, which Gabriella stood in. It swirled like a whirlpool and sucked in everything in the room. She watched Apex melt in front of her.

But she knew the name.

She screamed her heart out with joy, finally knowing who had killed her. Who had taken her life away.

She knew the name!

In Apex, if you know who murdered you, you may return back to Earth.

The reason people never return back to Earth is because they usually go to heaven before that. They go to heaven before they see their walls. They go to heaven because they have given up.

She quickly ran through the pool of blood to the door, opened it, and ran to the gates.

She ran right through them.

Her soul was free.

She bursted through His door.

"I know who killed me."

He was standing at her attention. He smiled.

"Who was it, my dear Gabriella? You know the ticket to Earth is in your hands if you tell me."

Gabriella looked Him right in the eyes. She knew this was her moment.

She said the name.

He hugged her. "Oh, my child. You have grown so strong. Are you ready to return to Earth?"

She nodded with tears in her eyes.

"Make sure you say hi to those little boys and your little girl for me, okay? And I don't want to see you back here until you're old and grumpy, okay?"

She nodded and wiped her eyes. "Thank you, Sir."

She was zapped to Earth.

She ran free as a bird, alive, and loving life.

She ran upstairs, up three flights of stairs, and waited at a familiar door. She knocked.

He answered the door.

"It was Ally."


	51. Dream Death

READ AUTHOR'S NOTE BEFORE YOU READ THE CHAPTER!

(A/N: Sorry for the delay guys. I've been busy with three dogs, four cats, and playing Sims 2 pets, lol. I've also had HORRIBLE writer's block. To help with easing it, I started writing a family feud story, yes it's T&G, set in the 1850's-1860's down in the southern US. I don't think I'll post it here, because I think it's horrible. X_X But I will hopefully continue Second Chance pretty soon, and ending it, depending on what I can figure out for the plot. I wrote Rocking Chair thinking it would be 20 chapters and it is at 51 now. I now intend on making it VERY long for suspense, my satisfaction, and your confusion. :) This story was based on a dream, and as some of you have said, it is really a nightmare. The plot is going to thicken VERY quickly, so if you have any questions about what is going on or that you don't understand something, PLEASE feel free to PM me or comment on the story. I will get back to you ASAP. By the way, I am updating pictures of Talon, Lyle, and Aubrey. I am having a lot of trouble finding cute kid pictures (I have found some for Aubrey, not Talon and Lyle). When I was writing for youtube, it was NEVER this hard to find cute kid pictures on Flickr, and now, it's terribly hard! :( So if you guys feel like you can help me look for cute kid pictures, PM me and we'll look together!)

**NOW you can read! Enjoy!**

"_It was Ally… "_

Troy twisted a few times in bed before rising up. His dreams were beginning to become so realistic, like he was five inches from really touching her. It was like she was close to him, somehow.

The room was eerily cold and misty like fog. It was the middle of October, so the cold was to be expected, but fog? It just seemed odd. Everything was odd, so he pushed it aside like it was nothing and threw his feet over the edge of the bed. He rubbed his bloodshot eyes, and looked on his dresser.

No beer, no drugs, no nothing.

He was _clean_ and had been for a long time.

He raised himself up and stretched his arms. Muscles contracted and showed themselves considerably through his tanned, velvet skin. The mirror displayed a clear image of a man, a man affected by the death of his lover and worn by 3 kids.

He glanced over at his clock, which clearly read 3:56 AM.

His dreams of Gabriella always woke him up when the best part was near. He couldn't control them, they just came. She would be there, and the next second, he was staring at a dark grey wall with three large hanging portraits of each of his kids.

His growling stomach lead him to his kitchen. He looked around in his cupboards, which were stocked full of toddler lunches and snacks for Talon. There wasn't a single quick meal for Troy anywhere in the house, other than cereal. He was tired of cereal.

Grabbing a bowl, spoon, milk, and a box of cereal, he sat down at his table and started spooning cereal into his mouth.

It was like she was trying to talk to him through his sleep, and there had been many times where she had said the murderer's name.

Only, there was one thing. The murderer's name was different in every dream.

He heard Ally quite often, but names like Maria, Jack, Troy and Talon were said also.

His dreams were so odd, like dark fantasies mixed with Disney world. They were so unrealistic, but so true at the same time. Believing his dreams was tough, but he knew that she was trying to tell him something. So, he had to believe that she was talking to him. He had to believe that she was lying beside him in bed. He had to believe that Gabriella was watching over Talon, Lyle, and Aubrey, protecting them from any harm that may be coming. He had to believe that she was with him all day, every day.

He had to believe, or else his life would be a wreck.

Whether she was real or not, he had to believe.

Believe…

Believe in what was right and what was wrong…

"Daddy?"

Troy's body twitched and he looked over. He was in such deep thought that Talon had scared him.

"You scared me, Tal." Troy chuckled slightly with a crooked smile. "Why aren't you in bed?"

Talon was now four. He was the smartest kid Troy knew. Talon could ride a bike without training wheels, read 3rd grade level books, control a computer, make himself macaroni and cheese, and he even spoke French, as his daddy had taught him. He was a big help to Troy with Aubrey and Lyle, who were both two years old. Lyle was a monster, and Aubrey was… just like Gabriella in every way. Talon helped Troy make them food, put them to bed, give them a bath, and everything else that went along with two year olds. He knew he was Troy's favorite, although he was hushed when Talon said it out loud.

Troy noticed that his cheeks were wet and his eyes were bloodshot. He had obviously been crying. He gave Troy the saddest look possible.

Troy held his arms out. "What's wrong buddy?"

Talon couldn't hold his tears, and let them pour down his face as he dragged himself towards Troy with open arms. Troy lifted his little body onto his lap and gave him a big hug as Talon cried into his shoulder. Troy gently rubbed his back and tried to shush him, but Talon was past the point of stopping.

"Come on now, you're a big boy, tell me what's going on."

Two minutes had passed before Talon was able to say anything. Once he was ready to talk, Troy was ready to listen.

"I had a dream. A bad dream, a very, very bad dream… " Talon sobbed.

"What happened in your dream?"

"Me and you and Brie and Lyle were in the park and everything got dark. Everyone went away, everything went away, and I was all alone. I kept saying 'daddy' but you wouldn't answer and I got scared and I started crying. Then someone came behind me and hugged me. It was mommy."

Troy's heart started to beat faster.

"She told me that everything was okay and that everyone was safe in Apex with her. She said you and Brie and Lyle were dead- "

"Apex? How do you know about Apex?" Troy became defensive, even against his four year old son. He didn't want his kids knowing about Apex. Troy often told Lyle, Aubrey, and Talon about Gabriella and showed them pictures and videos, but he never, ever said anything about how she had came back to visit him years ago and told him everything about death itself. He didn't want his kids knowing about that.

"Mommy told me about it in my dream. She said you guys were dead and that I would be safe in the dark room by myself because she was watching me."

"Then why are you upset? I told you not to be scared of mommy and that mommy watches over you every day and every night. She loves you very, very much."

"Because someone came up behind her and pushed her down. The bad person cut her neck with a sharp thing and kicked her and hit her. Daddy, that bad person was so mean to mommy. The bad guy made her die daddy, made her die- "

Troy cut Talon off with a big hug. He held Talon tightly in his arms. Talon was hysterical.

"I'm so sorry you were dragged into this, Talon. If I could tell mommy to stop talking to you in your dreams, I would… "

Did Gabriella mean to scare him? Did she want him to be scared of her? Did she want him to forget she ever existed?

All these seemed like possible questions to Troy. The obvious answer would be no, but within the past few months, the answers were yes. She always appeared in Talon's dreams being killed or hurt very badly.

But what she _truly_ wanted Troy and Talon to know was that her murderer was nearby.

And the murderer was after Troy, Talon, Lyle, and Aubrey.


	52. Quick Question

(A/N: Added new pictures of the kids at the bottom of my profile. Hope you enjoy. :))

One man. Three kids. No mother. No life.

Christmas was approaching fast. Troy had only a week to go Christmas shopping for his kids. His parents were coming over to help out. Since Troy had finished college and had a job now, he was raking in more money than he ever imagined he would in his entire life. He had overloads of money. His kids were going to have a good Christmas, he promised himself that.

Whether Gabriella was in his life or not, his kids weren't going to suffer like she did. They were going to go to school, college, and make something of themselves.

Troy listened to nothing but empty wind and children playing. No birds but seagulls flapped their wings. Everyone was migrating south. The wildlife disappeared. But it was the best time to be in the park. It wasn't too hot or too cold. His fingers moved rapidly among the touch screen of his phone as he texted his mom.

"_Are you on the plane yet?"_ She texted.

"_No, I decided to take the kids to the park before we leave. It should wear them out enough to fall asleep on the plane."_

"_Are you bringing a lot of wrapping paper and tape? Your father and I went shopping too but the store is closed and we forgot to buy wrapping paper and tape."_

"_I sure did."_

"Daddy?" Talon tapped Troy's knee.

Troy jerked his gaze away from his phone for a second to look at Talon. "What?"

Talon handed Troy a football. "Can we play?"

Troy smiled. "We have to get over to the airport, buddy. We'll play when we get to grandma and grandpa's house.

He looked back down at his phone. _"Who's making Christmas dinner, you or I?"_

"_Neither. Your dad is making it."_

"_What about Gabi's parents? Are they coming to your house for Christmas or… ?"_

"_I don't know. I wouldn't expect them to."_

"_I wasn't. They are dead beat parents and dead beat grandparents. Jesus Christ, I'm generous enough to let them see their grandchild after what they did to Gabriella and they still don't want to see him."_

"_Some people are like that honey. I'm proud of you for sticking around your kids and being their father. Even when you were a little boy, with the attitude you had, I expected you to drop any kids you had on your father and I, but you're a good daddy. I'm very proud of you, Troy."_

"_I have to go find my kids and get going to the airport. I'll call you later. Love you."_

"_Love you too. Talk to you later."_

Troy put his phone in his pocket and stood up. He turned around slightly, making sure his truck was still there. He quickly pulled his keys out, unlocked it, and went towards the playground.

He spotted Aubrey, running towards him with her hand held out. She was sobbing and tears were running down her cheeks.

Troy knelt down to size as she made the quickest effort to run to him. "Come here, baby… " He held his hand out.

Little Aubrey stopped right in front of him, her hand held out towards him. He touched her hand, gazing upon her palm, and noticed a little scratch with a spot of blood dripping out.

"Awh, Aubrey… " Troy took her hand in his and wiped the blood off her palm, then kissed it gently. "Daddy make it better, sweetheart?"

Aubrey's sobs slowed slightly.

"Did you cut yourself?"

"No… " She pointed with her other hand towards Lyle.

Troy stood up with Aubrey in his arms. "Hey, Lyle."

Lyle turned around.

"Did you hurt your sister?"

Lyle shook his head. "No!"

"Liar. Go get your brother and tell him we have to go home. Santa isn't going to bring you presents if you don't start being a little nicer."

As Troy was walking back to the car, he felt very strange, just simply standing there. Like someone was watching him.

He brushed the feeling off. He couldn't waste time on thinking he was being watched.

Aubrey was still sobbing as he got to his truck. He set her down in her car seat on the far left side of the backseat and strapped her down. He kissed the top of her head. "Daddy's going to put a band-aid on it… " He climbed in the front seat and reached in his glove box, where he kept a box of colorful, fuzzy band-aids.

"Fuzzies?"

"The pink fuzzy one? I saved that one for you, because you're the only girl in the house and you deserve some pink, right?" He gently placed the band-aid on the palm of her left hand and kissed it. "Better?"

She nodded.

He wiped her tears away from her eyes and kissed her forehead. "I love you, Brie."

"Love you, daddy." She sobbed.

Troy lifted Talon into his seat and then lifted Lyle into his seat. Talon was in the middle, Lyle was on the right.

Lyle was a sweet kid, but he had his bad side. He looked like Troy, but in the same sense, didn't. He had brown wispy hair and dark eyes. He always wondered why women sell themselves on the street. There are other ways to make money, other than selling your body to a complete stranger. That girl was in her teens when she got pregnant. Gabriella's age. And now, she has to wonder what ever happened to her little boy while a truck driver fucks her in the cab of his truck. And Troy was left with Lyle as a memory, a memory of how selfish people really are. He didn't look at Lyle as a bad thing, though. He loved Lyle like he loved his other kids. But he could never overlook what his real mother did. How she could just hand him over like that… It blew Troy's mind.

And Aubrey… She was just like Gabriella. She looked a lot like Gabriella, she acted like Gabriella, and she completely reminded him of Gabriella every day. Aubrey had light brown hair and beautiful brown eyes. She was sensitive in all ways possible. She didn't like other people at all, but she adored her daddy and Talon. She truly was the baby of the family, and surely acted like it. Not a word from her mother had been said. He didn't know who her mother was, nor did he care. He suspected that Gabriella was reincarnated into Aubrey, not that he ever believed reincarnation until Aubrey came along. He had not heard from Gabriella in years, and he believed that she moved on to heaven. He also believed that God gave Gabriella a second chance, and that second chance was Aubrey.

He just wished that _Gabriella _was Lyle and Aubrey's mother, not some whore, slut, prostitute, or whoever their mothers really were. Every time he looked at Aubrey, he asked himself 'How could someone leave such a beautiful little girl at someone's door?' Sometimes when he looked at Lyle, all he said to himself was 'He looks just like his slutty mother' or 'who could leave their kid and not know what happened to them?'

He jumped in the front seat of his truck and started it. "Talon, keep them awake until we get to the airport, okay?"

"I will. Can I ask you something daddy?"

Talon stopped at the busy intersection and turned towards Talon. "Yeah, go ahead."

"Can we go see mommy when we go to Ohio?"


	53. Julie

PLEASE READ! VERY IMPORTANT!

(A/N: The hard drive on my computer is bad, and it's over $200 to replace. If I can edit the original documents and post them as new chapters, I will do that. If I cannot, I want to let you know that under this chapter, I will draw a line and will continue to write each chapter on my iPad, since you can't upload documents to the Internet on the iPad (which really sucks in this case). I will write on the description of the story "NEW UPDATE!", leave that up, and if I update it a second time within a matter of three days, I will write beside it "(2)", "(3)", and so on. After three days, I will start over. But that is only if I cant edit and post the chapter. Thanks for the cooperation!)

Troy waited outside the airport. He leaned against the building, looked down at two sleeping kids in car seats, held a four year old boy's hand, and a leash connected to Marley in the other hand. They arrived in the evening, at about 8:00.

His mom's new van pulled up. Jack was driving. They both got out and opened up the van. "Oh my god Troy, they're getting so big!" Kay gave Talon a big hug. "He looks just like Troy, doesn't he Jack?"

"Look over here, Kay. Doesn't Brie look like someone familiar?" Jack pointed at Aubrey.

"She looks like Gabriella… " Kay turned towards Troy. "Are you sure Gabriella didn't have twins?"

"I'm sure, mom." Troy gave Kay a squeeze.

"We miss you guys a lot. Why don't you stay for a couple weeks up here? Use your vacation time at work?"

"A week is enough. I have to get back or they will fire me." Troy pulled away from his mom. "Sorry."

…..

Talon was the first inside the house, along with Marley. He was astounded by all the decorations that Jack and Kay made for Christmas. This was the first time in 2 years he had actually been in Ohio, so he didn't remember the house at all, really.

"Daddy, look at the tree!" Talon marveled as Troy came into the living room. "It's so big and it's pretty!"

"Grandma and grandpa always have a big Christmas. We're going to have a nice Christmas dinner, too."

Aubrey ran into the house, crying, and Lyle ran after her, laughing as Jack chased him.

"Aubrey, daddy and Talon are over here." Troy turned around. "Come on, sweetheart."

Her short body sprinted towards Troy, her arms out wide. Troy picked her up and looked down at Talon. "Go tell grandpa to come here."

Troy stepped towards the tree, watching Talon run towards Jack screaming his head off. Aubrey didn't stop crying until Troy flipped the switch to turn the tree on. Aubrey lifted her head off Troy's shoulder, still sobbing, and stared at the tree. Her beautiful chocolate brown eyes scanned the tree, every inch, making sure she didn't miss one detail of the golden, hand-painted bulbs or the red velvet silk that circled around the entire tree. A little smile creeped up on her face. She reached her tiny hand to touch the gorgeous, round glass bulb that hung in front of her.

"No baby, don't touch that. It will break if it falls off the tree."

She quickly drew her hand back.

"What do you want, Troy?" Jack walked into the living room. "Is something wrong?"

"Be careful with Aubrey, okay? She's sensitive. She is scared of a lot of people and she doesn't like horsing around, unlike Lyle."

"I didn't mean to scare her. Lyle wanted to play and when I chased him around, she freaked out." Jack walked towards Troy. "She's a beautiful little girl, I'll tell you that. She looks a lot like Gabriella. I'm surprised she's not Talon's fraternal twin that was frozen for two years."

"No, she's definitely not Gabriella's. I don't know who her mother is, nor do I care."

Jack adjusted a bulb on the tree and stood back, looking at it. "You _should_ care, son."

"Why? It's not like the bitch means anything to me."

"Language, Troy… " He raised an eyebrow. "In my house, no. Outside of my house, whatever you want."

"Sorry."

"She should mean something to you. She's your daughter's mother. She carried that baby for nine months and gave birth to it. If it wasn't for her, you wouldn't have a daughter, would you?" Jack said. "If it wasn't for Beth, I wouldn't have a daughter either."

"Is Julie coming over?" Troy quickly changed the subject.

"Yeah, she's bringing her husband and her kids."

"Oh, the bitchy sister… " Troy muttered. "Great, wonderful. So you invited her to ruin everything? Great dad, just great… "

"Troy, they are family whether you like it or not." Jack began to walk out of the living room. "Deal with it."

…..

It wasn't long before Julie, her husband, and kids came over. They were always early just to rub their jobs and successful lives in Troy's face.

"Daddy! I missed you!" Julie hugged Jack as she walked in the door. "You won't believe it! I got a promotion!"

"Oh wow, that's great sweetheart!" Jack gave her a pat on the back. "Where's the kids?"

"Daniel was following me. Tessa, Cassie and Mara are outside with Jake playing in the snow."

Troy sat on the top step with Lyle, watching down at them talk like they hadn't seen each other in ten years. She wasn't a sister to Troy. She was from a different mother. A mother who happened to use his father's sperm to get pregnant. Her daughter didn't see Jack until she was 17 years old, so therefore, Troy never had siblings growing up, nor did he want any now. She was a complete asshole to Troy and completely hogged Jack. Troy didn't care. He had been fending for himself for so long that he didn't want attention from the bitch.

"Hey Lyle… " Troy pulled Lyle on to his lap. He figured if he was going to use one of his kids, he might as well use the tough one to pull off the trick. "Do you know who that is?" He pointed to Julie

"Who daddy?" Curiously, Lyle turned around with wide eyes and open ears.

"That lady, her name is Bitch."

"Say hi? Me say hi?" Lyle got excited. "I say hi to Bitch?"

"Yeah, go tell her 'Hi Bitch'." Troy let go of him. "Go on! Go tell her!"

Lyle excitedly ran down the stairs, past Jack, and stood right below the lady. He tugged on her pant leg.

She looked down at him. Before she could say anything, Lyle started talking.

"Hi Bitch!" Lyle looked up at Troy with pride on his face. "Me Lyle!"

Julie was completely shocked. Jack picked Lyle up and stared him in the eyes. "NO swearing, got it?"

"Hi Bitch! Hi Bitch!" Lyle continued on, laughing.

"Her name is Julie. Say hi to Julie."

Jack turned Lyle around so he could face her. "Hi Bitch!"

"Lyle!" Jack suddenly realized what was going on and turned around. He looked at the top of the steps as Troy was failing to keep quiet and was laughing hard.

As he laughed, Troy stumbled down the stairs, took Lyle from his dad, and looked at Julie. "Now my kid is going to call you Bitch all week. How do you like that, bitch?"

"I'm going to tell my kids that your name is asshole. How about that, asshole?" She gave a big smile to Lyle. "Hey, that guy, his name is asshole." She pointed to Troy.

Lyle turned around. "Nuh-uh, that daddy Troy." He smacked her arm. "You asshole." He giggled. "Asshole-bitch, asshole-bitch, asshole bitch." He sang as Troy put him down. He ran into the dining room with Kay, singing "asshole-bitch, asshole-bitch".

Troy was tickled silly by the fact that Lyle was _just_ like himself.

"Troy, Julie, you know the rules." Jack said. "If I catch you two torturing each other all this week, there's going to be trouble."

"Oh, I know the rules… " Troy turned around to go catch Lyle. "Doesn't mean I'll follow them." He muttered to himself.


	54. Stay With The Angels

The old truck's tires crunched the gravel beneath. The pathway was long and sullen, which in fact, sounded like Troy's life. Too long and too sullen.

The truck pulled into a parking spot, where the gravel was thick, and the crunching stopped. Troy twisted the key in the slot and pulled it out. He glanced over at Talon, who was in the front seat, since there were no back seats in the truck. Troy had felt a weird feeling in his stomach the entire car ride, but he couldn't show how nervous he was to Talon. It would make him scared, more scared than even Troy.

"Daddy, are we going to see mommy?" Talon innocently asked.

Troy looked out the windshield. The grass was greener here than anywhere else. No brown soil patches, no dead grass, no tree limbs, no leaves. Just green, freshly cut grass stretching far beyond the eye could see. A dark grey stone building erected about 500 feet to the left of the truck, which looked older than his own grandfather, stood as a landmark that nobody knew about until they had visited a second time. Large grey carved and polished rocks stood as silent sentinels, watching over their precious treasures buried beneath them deeply in a vault of 24 karat gold. A vault not even God himself could open. A vault that protected the precious treasures. Surrounding those rocks was a looming dark fence with pointed spikes that protected vandalistic teenagers from destroying the monuments.

"Yes Talon, we're going to see mommy." Troy looked over at his anxious and excited son.

He held Talon's hand as they entered the stone building. It was a monument itself, being built in 1798. It was beautifully marbled inside and had vaults made of silver lining the walls.

They approached the front desk, where an old man and an old women talked over their dinners.

The women looked up at Troy with a smile when he approached the desk. "How can I help you two fine gentlemen?"

"I'm looking for the grave site of Gabriella Montez."

The woman searched through the files. "Montez... Montez... Gabriella Montez... " She said to herself. "Do you have the date of death?"

"July 8th, 2008."

Talon looked up at Troy with a smile. "That's my birthday, daddy- "

"Talon, shush." Troy glanced down at him. "I'm fully aware of the day you were born."

The old woman pulled a file out and opened it, glancing over her reading glasses at Troy. "Lot G-15, right beside the red marked tree."

"Okay, thanks." Troy turned to leave.

"Wait, is that her son?" The old woman spoke. "I'm terribly sorry for your loss, sir, and your young son's."

Troy turned a little, looking at the woman. "Thank you."

"I just can't help but say sorry because my granddaughter died giving birth to her son."

_But Gabriella didn't die giving birth..._

"Oh, I'm sorry." Troy turned around the other way. "How is your great grandson?"

"He's ten now, and he's doing great. His father is out of the picture, so my son is raising him with his wife. He's into baseball."

"That's great... " Troy smiled. "The doctor gave Talon a shot and put him into shock. We all thought he was dead until two days later, they told us they switched his card with another dead baby's card on accident."

"That's horrible! Did you sue them?"

Troy grinned. "You bet. I sued their asses off."

The old woman smiled. "I'll let you two go. Good luck."

"Thank you." Troy turned around.

...

Troy spotted the red tag on the large maple tree. He was directly under the tree.

He spotted the small, dark, flat slate.

_Gabriella Montez_

_June 18th, 1993 - July 8th, 2008_

_Trapped in a world with angels_

Talon carried with him a few freshly picked flowers from Kay's garden.

"Go put the flowers beside mommy's stone." Troy let go of his hand.

Talon gently set the flowers beside the granite slate.

"Mommy, your rock is really pretty." Talon wiped the slate with his hand, brushing the grass blades and dirt away from it.

"It's been four years, Gabi." Troyset Talon in his lap as they both sat on the ground. "And I still miss you."

"I miss you too mommy."

"I show them pictures of you almost every day. I tell them stories about how silly and funny you were. I just wish they could hear your voice."

Talon picked at some grass below. "Can you come out so I can give you a hug and kiss? Please?"

"Tal, mommy can't give you a hug and a kiss. You know that."

"Why not? Why can't I see mommy?" Talon looked up at Troy. "Mommy's hiding under the ground, why can't she come up?"

"She just can't Talon."

"Why not?"

"Quit, okay? I told you that mommy can't come back."

"Why not? Tell me why!"

"Because she's dead, Talon! She's gone! She's in heaven with angels!"

"Why can't she come and see me? WHY!" Talon stood up. "You said we were going to see mommy and we're not!"

Troy grabbed Talon's shoulders. "MOMMY IS GONE! SHE CAN NEVER, EVER, EVER COME BACK! SOME ASSHOLE DECIDED TO END HER LIFE EARLY AND WE WILL NEVER BE ABLE TO SEE HER AGAIN!"

Both boys stood there, staring into eachother's eyes, which were wide. Troy was shedding tears, like Talon, but Troy was breathing heavily as the silence set in. Talon was shocked. He thought mommy was coming back, and she wasn't. She was never going to come back, and he had to live the rest of his life motherless.

"Talon, I'm sorry... " He pulled Talon into his arms and kissed his cheek. "I didn't mean to be mean, I'm just as upset as you as about mommy leaving... "

Talon cried hysterically. Troy allowed him to pour his tears on to his shoulder.

"Mommy is safe. She loves you more than anything in thewidely wide world. You are her baby boy and nothing is going to change that. She has to stay with the angels."

"I want mommy... " He sobbed. "I love mommy and I want her to come back... "

"I know you do." Troy kissed the side of his head. "Let's go back to grandma and grandpa's house. It's too sad here for you and I."

Troy picked Talon up and turned around.

Four years since she had died, and time heals no broken wounds.


	55. Soaking Wet

"Troy, is that... You?"

Gabriella's hand reached through the thick white fog which surrounded her body.

Suddenly, a flash...

She was standing on green grass. A little boy and his father stood huddled by a gravestone, sobbing and crying. Imaginary tears fell down her imaginary cheeks. Her imaginary feet guided her towards the boy and his father, and then, she disappeared into thin air. She knew she was heading to the portal of Apex.

But, she didn't go to Apex.

Large drops of pounding rain hammered her petite body. She looked up at the pitch black sky, watching the lighter but dark clouds roll over and shed massive amounts of rain, like heaven was crying. She wasn't wearing a white dress. She wasn't walking in white shoes. She didn't have a white headpiece on. Her clothes, makeup, and hair was normal. Normal teenage clothes, black eyeliner, mascara, and foundation, with a light shade of lipgloss on her lips. Her hair wasn't curled, but was straightened. The rain slowly made it form back into her natural curls.

She looked around. It was nighttime. Not even a streetlight could find her lost body. And to make it worse, she was cold and soaked in the middle of December.

Was she alive?

...

Troy sat in the living room armchair by himself, staring by a black TV and a decorated tree. Aubrey, Lyle, and Talon were all sleeping upstairs, along with Jake and Julie's kids. The adults were sitting around in the dining room, talking about the guests that were coming over and planning Christmas day and Christmas eve. Troy had stepped aside for a minute to make sure that there wasn't a tornado coming their way. Of course, there wasn't, but he wanted to make sure.

His phone began ringing. Who would call at twelve at night?

He checked the number. The number was blocked.

He pressed talk and held the phone to his ear. "Hello?"

"Troy?"

"Who is this?"

"I found some quarters on the ground and found a pay phone. I'm soaked and I don't know where I am. Something went wrong on the way to Apex and I ended up here in the rain- "

"Gabriella?" He could her her voice becoming shaky as she began to talk.

"Yeah, it's me. I need you to find me."

He bolted out of his chair. His mom was about to ask where he was going, and he blurted "watch my kids" and slammed the door.

The rain poured over his body as he rushed to his truck. It came down in large drops which stung as they hit his body.

He got into his truck and pulled the keys from his other pocket. He started the truck.

"You're lucky there's only one pay phone around here. If you are around here, of course." Troy sighed and pulled out of his driveway. "I'll be there in a minute."

He pressed end on his phone.

...

He was a corner away from the pay phone when his truck sputtered. He looked at his gas meter. "What the hell... "

It still had an entire half tank left.

It came to a stop. He tried starting it with no luck.

"Damn it!" He desperately tried to start the truck with no luck.

He had no option but to find her by foot.

Troy opened the door and shut it, deciding to deal with the problem later, and started walking towards the pay phone.

The rain slithered into his shirt, down his pants, trickled across his arms, legs, and face... It only took ten seconds before he was soaked from head to toe. To make it worse, he was shivering and it was chilly 51 degrees. NOT the ideal weather to be standing outside in the rain.

He turned the corner, not being able to see the pay phone because it was so dark. There was usually a streetlight above it, but it was completely off.

Suddenly, it flickered on, and below it was a silhouette of a young girl sitting on the ground shivering, her knees pulled close to her chest.

"GABRIELLA?" He yelled to the silhouette. A head turned.

"TROY!" She stood to her feet and started running towards him.

He started also. His soaked shoes sloshed against the wet ground, throwing water all over himself and spraying it outwards. The water was so cold, so so cold...

They were so close, their hands almost felt as if they were already in one another's.

And then, they hit.

Their lips met and it was no longer a dream.

He held her waist within his strong hands, pulling her close, feeling her warmth as their lips moved with eachother's. Her arms flung around his neck.

It felt as if they were two long lost souls finally finding each other again.

He pulled back from her. "How long do you have?" He said, panting.

"I don't know. It just all happened and I ended up here."

He could feel her violent shivering and quickly held her close to his body.

"My truck broke down. I have to get it fixed or we'll be staying in it for the night." He kissed her forehead. "Come on, let's get out of the rain."

She agreed and they both began sprinting down the road, holding hands.

They approached the tired truck which grunted in dissatisfaction. Troy opened the door quickly and let Gabriella crawl in. He got in directly after her.

"Holy shit, it's cold... " Troy chuckled. "And wet."

"I'm so cold... " She shivered. "Do you have a blanket?"

"Yeah, in the back." He grabbed Aubrey's big blanket and threw it over Gabriella. "I've gotta go find out what's going on with the truck... Will you start it for me when I give you a thumbs up?"

She nodded. "Yeah."

He jumped back out of the truck and to the front of the truck. He opened the hood and looked around. "I can't see a damn thing... " He said to himself. "And I let Aubrey play with my flashlight earlier..."

He gave Gabriella a thumbs up.

She tried starting the car, and Troy looked into the motor. He couldn't see anything wrong. He unplugged a couple spark plugs and plugged them back in, confused as what was wrong. He gave Gabriella a thumbs up.

She turned the key again.

He searched around, but nothing.

Troy couldn't see a thing and he was getting cold quickly. He shut the hood and got back in the driver's seat.

"Anything?"

"I can't see fucking thing outside.. I'll have to wait until morning... "

She sighed. "So we're going to be here for the night?"

"Looks like it." He sighed.

They both panted and shivered in the cab of his dad's old truck. Troy started giggling.

"What's so funny?" She huddled into Aubrey's blanket. "We're in a car in the middle of winter, and it's pouring rain outside!"

"My dad and his shitty trucks... " Troy giggled on.

"Where's your phone? Can'go you call and get us a jump or something?"

"If I could, I would. My phone doesn't get service in this part of town. And I don't have any money on me for the pay phone. Do you have any quarters left?" He looked over at Gabriella.

"I only found four and the phone charges .75 a call. I used the fourth one because you have to add extra time. I didn't come from Apex with money."

Troy laughed. "Tell your friend God to send us a signal for my phone."

"I don't even know why I ended up down here. I thought I saw you in Apex, and then I ended up in a graveyard? Then I ended up here. Unfortunately, I don't know how much time I have before I leave."

Troy opened his wet arms and grabbed her, pulling her across the seat and huddled close to her. "Why haven't you came down for two years?"

"I thought you forgot about me... " She traced her fingers along his wet pants. "You seemed to move on after the last time I came. I stopped watching over you. And then you started having sex with those sluts and I figured that you were moving on. So I stayed in Apex, but I stopped watching over you and Talon.

"Oh god Gabriella, I never forgot about you... " He kissed the side of her head and squeezed her. "You are everything to me. I wouldn't be here if it wasn't for Talon, Lyle, and Aubrey. I have to take care of them... "

"Aubrey? Lyle?" She looked up at him. "You have more kids?"

"Yeah. Those girls you saw me having sex with? Two of them are their mothers."

"So you really did forget... "

"I was a drunk. I couldn't tell you right from left. It was a mistake."

"And you have two more kids because of it, right?"

"Yeah. My little Aubrey, she looks just like you. I kept thinking you were reincarnated into her but obviously you weren't. She is beautiful. Lyle acts just like me. He's such a funny kid. And Talon... He looks just like me when I was his age, but he has your big heart. He's a great kid."

She wiped a tear away that fell down her cheek. "My baby... I haven't seen him for three years... "

Troy pulled his phone out and went to his pictures. He turned the phone towards Gabriella. "Here's a picture of him."

She glanced over at the phone. "Yep, just like daddy, huh?"

"And here's Lyle and Aubrey." He flipped through a couple pictures and showed her.

She smiled. "I guess she does look a lot like me. They both look a lot alike."

He shoved it back in his pocket. "It's been rough, but we survived."

Gabriella sighed and looked at the splattering rain on the windshield. "I'm so tired... "

"So am I... " He looked back behind the seat and saw another blanket. "Whether you like it or not, I'm going to sleep naked. I'm not sitting in these wet clothes all night.

He took off his shirt and threw it by the gas pedal. He started taking his shoes off also.

"I guess you're right... " She looked at her clothes. "Mind if I take mine off too?"

"You know I don't mind that, at all." He grinned at her. "I don't mind lying beside a naked girl in an old truck."

Both shed all of their clothes and we're huddled together between two blankets, shivering.

He moved her wet hair behind her face and kissed her head. "I love you, Gabs."

"I love you too... " She looked up and pecked his waiting lips. "Goodnight."

"Goodnight." He held her hand and rested his head on the seat, where both Troy and Gabriella fell asleep.


	56. A Little Boy And His Mother

Her chocolate orbs fluttered open. It was daylight outside, but still pouring.

She looked around. She was still on Earth. Troy wasn't in the truck.

When she finally sat up, the driver's seat door opened and Troy jumped in the truck, breathing heavily.

"So cold... " He shivered and turned the key in the ignition. Nothing.

"Do you know what's wrong with the truck?" She pulled the blanket close to her neck and yawned.

He jumped and looked over. "You scared the hell out of me... " He chuckled a little and leaned over, pecking her on the cheek. "Good morning, and no, I don't know exactly what's going on yet."

He turned the key again, the motor sputtered, and shut off again. "Dammit." He cursed to himself. "Your clothes are dry, by the way."

She reached towards the floor of the car and felt her clothes. As she began to put them on, Troy handed her a comb and a hair band.

"That's all I could find. I keep it in my truck at home for Aubrey and it just happened to be in here."

She put her hair up in a ponytail and put the comb in the glovebox.

He got out of the car once again and went to the front of the truck, looking around in the motor. He noticed that the spark plugs were switched.

He switched them back and got back into the truck.

"Did you find out what's wrong?"

"I think so." He turned the key and the truck sputtered. He tried again, and the truck roared. "Spark plugs were switched. Sounds like dad to me." He looked over at her. "We need to home to my parents' house and get dry."

...

He pulled into the driveway and noticed that a light was still on inside.

"Shit... " He sighed. " I'll bring you some clothes outside, okay?"

She nodded.

Troy bolted out of the truck and into the house.

"WHERE HAVE YOU BEEN ALL NIGHT? YOUR DAUGHTER WOKE UP AT 5 IN THE MORNING SCREAMING FOR HER DADDY!" Kay stood up from the living room chair.

"Dad's truck broke down. I didn't have service and didn't bring any money for the pay phone." He ran up the stairs.

"TROY- " Kay cut herself off with a groan and went into the living room, where Aubrey was on the couch with Jack, sobbing.

Troy dug through Gabriella's old clothes in his old bedroom and pulled out a pair of jeans and a shirt, along with her underwear and bra. He also changed his clothes and looked over at Talon and Lyle, who were both lying in Troy's old bed with eachother. He gave each of them a quick kiss and closed the door behind him.

He ran back down the stairs, where his mom caught him the next time. "Go get your daughter and comfort her!"

Troy sighed. "Mom, I have something to do." He started towards the door.

"Where are you going?"

Troy grabbed Aubrey from Jack. "I'll be right back."

He ran out the front door with Aubrey in his arms, along with Gabriella's clothes.

He opened the driver's door and got in quickly before Gabriella had a chance to look over at him.

"Here's your old clothes." He handed them to her and sighed. "My mom is on my ass about leaving Aubrey alone last night. She's really sensitive and shy, and she is really attached to Talon and I."

Aubrey's tears stopped when she saw Troy, who gave her a big smile. "Hey baby, what happened? Did you have a bad dream last night?"

She nodded and touched his face. "Daddy... "

"Awh, sweetheart, I'm right here." He kissed her cheek.

Gabriella completely changed into new clothes and threw the blanket off.

"Aubrey, that's your mommy right there." He pointed. "Can you say hi to her?"

Aubrey looked over at Gabriella with tears running down her face.

"She's a beautiful little girl Troy, but she's not my daughter." Gabriella sighed.

"You are their mother whether you like it or not." He smiled. "Do you want to hold her?"

"I don't feel like I deserve to."

"Of course you do." Troy said. "Here... " He handed Aubrey to Gabriella. "She won't bite."

Gabriella stared at her tiny twin sitting in her lap. Aubrey looked up at Gabriella with big chocolate eyes, like Gabriella's and a little smile.

"She is just gorgeous, Troy... " Gabriella felt a few tears running down her face. "I remember when I was pregnant with Talon and we found out it was a girl. When he was born, I was upset because I wanted a little girl so badly... "

"She is your daughter, Gabi. You'll always be her mommy, no matter what DNA she has." Troy smiled. "I wish you could stay and we could raise the kids together... "

"I wish I could stay too." Gabriella sniffled. "I miss you and Talon so much... "

Troy kissed her cheek. "He talks about you all the time. He goes on about how proud he is to have a mommy as pretty as you."

She sobbed and wiped her tear away. "Can I see him? Or is he sleeping?"

"I'll go wake him up. Let me put Aubrey back in bed." Troy took Aubrey from Gabriella and went into the house.

Gabriella sat in the car by herself, wondering how much time she had left. She felt as if her body was real, like she was alive... She never felt that way the last time she came from Apex.

And, for that matter, she had stayed all night.

She hoped her presence on Earth was permanent, but she had a feeling that it wasn't.

Gabriella watched as Troy carried a little blonde boy out of the house. The boy was obviously tired, because his head was on Troy's shoulder.

Troy opened the truck door and set Talon between himself and Gabriella. He shut the door.

"Hey Talon, wake up."

Talon yawned and looked up at Troy.

"Look who came to see you." He nodded to Gabriella.

He turned his head. Talon squinted a little, then gasped. "Mommy?"

Gabriella couldn't help but cry. "Hi baby... "

Talon had a smile on his tired face. "Can I hug you?"

"You sure can, come here." She opened her arms and held him tightly as he climbed into them. She kissed the top of his head and ran her fingers through his soft hair.

"He's tiny for being four, isn't he?" Troy remarked.

She nodded slightly and looked at Troy with tears running down her cheeks. She sobbed loudly and buried her head into Talon's shoulder. "I had this little boy in my belly for such a long time, and I never got to see him until now, four years after you and I worried about heart failure. Four years after an asshole killed me... "

Talon pulled away from Gabriella. He kissed Gabriella's cheek.

"Nuh-uh, you're going to give me a kiss on the lips and like it." She pecked his lips and he started sobbing.

"What's wrong?" Troy rubbed Talon's back.

"I just love mommy so much... " He cried and buried his head between her breasts. She held him tightly and buried her own head into his soft blonde hair.

She rubbed his back. "He looks just like you Troy. He's got your blue eyes. I wanted him to have blue eyes so badly... "

Troy leaned over and kissed the side of Gabriella's head.

Talon lifted his head up and looked into Gabriella's eyes. "I love you... " He said through sobs.

"Sweetheart, don't cry, please... " Gabriella stroked his hair and sobbed. "I know you are sad that I haven't been with you for a long time, but I'm here right now."

Talon looked over at Troy with the saddest eyes. "Daddy, she is beautiful, just like you told me. She's the prettiest lady I've ever seen... "

Gabriella couldn't help but look over at Troy with a smile.

"See, did I lie?" Troy quickly wiped a tear away. "I told you she is the prettiest lady you'll ever see."

Talon opened an arm towards Troy, and Troy pulled Talon and Gabriella into his arms.

All three cried.

The family had been reunited, and both Troy and Gabriella knew that it wouldn't be long before they would be ripped apart again.


	57. Explanation

She spent a night by herself in the truck.

It had been over 24 hours since she arrived on Earth.

Was she there to stay?

Troy came outside first thing in the morning to check on her. He kissed her head and brushed her hair back as she woke.

"Morning, beautiful." He rubbed her back. "I brought two little helpers with me."

She sat up and yawned, then looked over at Talon and Lyle. "Have you told your mom and dad about me yet?"

"What's the point if you aren't staying?" Troy handed her a tray of breakfast. "I made you some waffles, I knew you had to be hungry."

She took the tray from him and set it on the dashboard.

"You two want to eat with me?" She smiled at the boys, who both returned the smile.

Troy lifted Talon and Lyle into the cab of the truck. Both boys sat beside Gabriella, waiting for a bite.

Troy watched as Gabriella and the boys ate, but wondered how it was possible she was still on Earth.

She handed Talon the fork. "My hair is all greasy and I feel disgusting. Do you think I could sneak inside and take a shower?"

"Boys, you can't tell asshole-bitch, grandma, grandpa, Jake, or any of their kids about mommy. It's a secret."

Lyle got excited. "Asshole-bitch be mad?"

"Yeah, she'll get mad and daddy is going to get a time out. So don't tell asshole-bitch."

Gabriella laughed so hard she spit her food out. "Troy, what the hell are you teaching these kids?"

"It was a joke and he made up a name for my sister Julie. Who does he remind you of?" Troy grinned.

"I don't know, a guy named Troy Bolton maybe?" Gabriella pulled Lyle on to her lap. "So, can I take a shower?"

Troy looked over at the house. "Talon, go make sure nobody is awake."

Talon looked over at Gabriella. "But I want to stay with mommy... "

"She is going to come inside if you go check and see if nobody is awake."

Talon leaned against Gabriella with a sad look on his face. "I don't want to... "

Lyle struggled to get off Gabriella's lap. "Me do it!"

Troy chuckled a little and grabbed Lyle out of the truck, setting him on the ground. "Come back and tell me, okay?"

Lyle ran into the house.

"That kid... " Gabriella shook her head. "He's 100% you."

"I know it." Troy got into the truck with Gabriella. Do you know what day it is today?"

She shook her head.

"It's Christmas eve." Troy messed around with the steering wheel. "The kids want you to help them open presents tomorrow... "

She wrapped an arm around Talon and kissed the top of his head. "I wish I could, Talon... " Gabriella looked down at him and smiled. "I don't know if I'll be here for Christmas. I really wish I could, sweetheart."

Talon sobbed. "I don't want you to leave... "

"I don't want to leave either. I want to stay with you and Aubrey, Lyle, and daddy." She sighed.

Talon buried his head into her side. "I love you mommy... "

"I love you too, baby." She ran her fingers up and down his back and looked over at Troy, who was looking at her.

"Are you going to be okay when I leave?" She said worriedly.

Truly, he knew he would have to be okay.

"What does it matter? I've been raising three kids by myself." He shrugged. "I'm used to it."

Tears fell down Gabriella's cheeks and hit the top of Talon's head. "I love you Troy... "

He reached for her hand and grabbed it, kissing it while tears ran down his cheeks also. "I love you too, Gabriella."

Lyle ran outside with a big smile.

"Is anyone awake?" Troy wiped his face and looked over at Lyle.

Lyle shook his head from side to side. "No wake."

"Okay, come on." He got out of the truck and shut the door.

Gabriella got out of the other side and pulled Talon out with her. She lifted him on to her hip and kissed his head. "Are you okay?"

He shook his head and buried it into her shoulder.

"Don't worry, okay? I'll try to stay for the rest of today."

"I want you to stay forever."

She looked at Troy helplessly.

"Let's just go, okay?" He opened the front door.

Gabriella followed Troy into the house. He looked around, making sure Lyle wasn't lying to him.

"Okay, upstairs... " He grabbed Gabriella's hand and pulled her towards the stairs.

They approached the steps.

"HOLD IT!"

"DAMN IT!" Troy cursed and turned around.

His parents were sitting at the kitchen counter. Lyle was in Jack's arms.

"Lyle, you said- "

"No wake." Kay crossed her arms. "I told him to tell you. He came up to me and asked if anyone was awake."

He looked at Gabriella. "See what I mean?"

"Who's your little girlfriend?" Kay got up and walked towards them.

Gabriella sighed and turned around.

...

Gabriella found some of her old clothes in Troy's dresser after she took a shower. She dug through them as she listened to Aubrey snore.

She was sick with the flu.

Troy opened his bedroom door and shut it. "I told them I had to take care of Aubrey. I've got five minutes and then I have to start explaining... "

"I'll take care of her. What do you need to know about Apex?"

"Absolutely nothing." He glanced over at Talon, who sat in Troy's armchair. "Talon, can you go get me Aubrey's medicine?"

"Where is it?"

"In the bathroom by the sink." Troy sat in the chair and sighed. "I'm not telling them anything about Apex."

"You might as well blow the entire thing open." Gabriella searched through Troy's suitcase for Aubrey's clothes.

"Gabriella, you don't have to do anything for Aubrey. I can get her going- "

"I didn't get to take care of my baby. Please?"

Troy chuckled. "If you want. She has a diaper on because when she gets sick, she pees all over the bed. So change her, then make her sit up and give her a half a syringe of liquid medicine. Don't let her fall back asleep. Take her to the toilet and wait for a while. Then get her dressed. Her clean clothes are on the right side of the suitcase."

"Do you want me to bring her downstairs or what?" Gabriella looked over at him.

"She needs to eat something, so yeah." Troy got up from the chair. "Talon will help you. He knows the routine."

"Just tell them everything, okay?"

"I will. If you have any trouble with Brie, let me know." He stood up.

Gabriella knelt beside Aubrey and looked up at him. "She's such a little angel. Look at how beautiful she is... "

"I know, she is just a baby." Troy opened the bedroom door. "Well, here I go."

"Good luck. I'm glad I don't have to do it."


	58. Liar Liar, Husband On Fire

Talon followed Gabriella down the stairs. She held Aubrey in her arms.

She could hear Troy telling his parents about Apex.

"Troy, what do you want me to feed her?"

He turned around from his chair in the living room. "Make her a piece of toast and whatever she wants to drink. Did you have any trouble with her?"

"No, she was a good girl." Gabriella sat her down at the kitchen counter.

Gabriella pulled some bread off the counter and pulled a piece out. "Talon, do you want a piece?"

He nodded.

She pulled another piece out and dropped them into the stainless steel toaster. She turned the knob to 2 minutes and pushed the lever down.

Aubrey coughed into her hand and yawned. "Mommy?"

Gabriella turned around. Troy must have taught her within a matter of two days who mommy was.

"What Aubrey?"

"Love you."

Gabriella moved Aubrey's hair out of her face and kissed her forehead. "I love you too."

Talon got a little jealous. "I love you mommy. I love you more than Brie does."

"I love you too Talon."

"Nuh-uh, love me more!" Aubrey smacked Talon's arm.

"Okay, quit you two." She looked around for the butter in the fridge. "Aubrey, what do you want to drink?"

"Juice." She looked in the fridge. "Apple juice, please."

Gabriella pulled the apple juice out, found the butter, and got a cup out of the cupboard. She poured Aubrey a cup. "Daddy taught you guys manners, didn't he?"

"Thank you." She smiled at Gabriella.

"Your very welcome." She handed Aubrey the cup.

"I want some too." Talon watched Aubrey drink. "Please."

She poured Talon a cup and handed it to him.

"Thanks." He grabbed the cup and gulped it down.

Gabriella buttered their toast and set it in front of them. She overheard Troy talking to his parents about her appearance.

"She came down here once before, when Talon was around a year old. I was here and she appeared in this old house... "

"Why didn't you tell us?" His mom asked.

"She didn't have enough time. She only had a certain amount of time before she was brought back to Apex."

"So all this time, she's been dead, but she switches back and forth between the two worlds, like a poltergeist or a ghost?" Jack said.

"Sort of, only she is completely real. She is 100% see-able, touch-able, and she can feel and talk and interact also. I don't know how... "

"God lets certain people come back." Gabriella stepped into the conversation. "People who weren't supposed to die. People who are young and deserve to live the rest of their lives. That is why he lets me come back. But I have been here for over 24 hours now, and usually, that is the limit. I don't know how and I don't know why, all I know is that it happens every day."

Troy sighed. "And now, Talon is scared to let her go. I let him see her because I thought it would be a matter of hours before she left but it isn't. She's still here."

Talon jumped off the kitchen stool and took Gabriella's hand. "Can we go play football outside? Please?"

"Mommy doesn't play football. That's what daddy does."

"Talon, it's snowing outside. When we get back to Baton Rouge, we will."

"Is mommy coming with us back to Baton Rouge?"

Troy looked at his parents. "See what I mean? What do I do?"

Julie came down the stairs. She yawned and stretched her arms out. "Oh, hi. Who are you?"

Gabriella looked desperately over at Troy. "I'm... "

"My wife?" Troy's eyes got wide. "She just arrived this morning."

Talon smiled. "She is my mommy."

Julie gave Gabriella a smile. "Nice to meet the woman my asshole brother married. I didn't even think he would ever get married."

Gabriella laughed. "He's no asshole."

"Oh yes he is." Julie looked over at him. "Did you hear what he taught him son?"

Lyle jumped out of Jack's arms and ran over to Julie, smacking her leg. "Daddy Troy is daddy, you are asshole-bitch. Asshole!"

Gabriella picked Lyle up. "Troy, tell him to quit!"

"We tried getting him to say aunt Julie but he just calls her asshole-bitch." Troy chuckled.

"I know, you told me earlier." She looked over at Aubrey, who was finishing up her plate. "I'm taking Aubrey upstairs... "

"Okay, you do that... Honey." He grinned.

"Okay, husband." She giggled behind Julie's back and set Lyle down.

"I'm going to help her."Julie said. "Get to know my sister in law."

Gabriella picked Aubrey up and went upstairs, Julie following close behind.

She went into Troy's bedroom. Julie followed.

"So, why did you marry my brother? Did he pay you? Did he rape you? Did he force you into marriage- "

Gabriella turned around. "I married him because I love him."

"How could you love him? He's an ass."

"He isn't an ass, he's a great guy. He loves me and our kids, and I'm happy with him."

She sat in the chair. "So how old are you? 25, 26, 23- "

"Nineteen, thank you." She set Aubrey on the bed. "Baby, do you want some water or something?"

"No water." Aubrey rested her head on the pillow.

"Nineteen? So that means you had Talon when you were- "

"Fifteen. Aubrey and Lyle, seventeen. Got pregnant at fourteen."

"They are twins, am I right?"

"Yeah... Lyle is older than Aubrey." She pulled the blankets over Aubrey. "Goodnight Aubrey." Gabriella kissed Aubrey's head. "Get better, okay?"

"There's something going on, I can tell... " She glanced over at Gabriella. "And I'm going to find out."


	59. Swears and Sickness

Troy pulled the truck up to Gabriella. The flight had ended, and he went to retrieve his truck from the parking garage. Marley stuck her nose out the window and sniffed around.

"Ooh, nice new truck." She said as Troy took Talon off her shoulder.

"I had to get another truck when I got Aubrey because I didn't have enough room in the red truck." He set Talon in his car seat in the back. "Do you know how to secure a car seat?"

"You're asking the girl who had to ask her four year old how to change Aubrey's diaper. I don't know how to do anything."

"I guess I'll have to teach you then, right?" He strapped Talon in and grabbed Aubrey's carseat, buckling it into the back.

"Guess so." She put Lyle's car seat in the back. "I'll let you do that."

He walked over to the other side of the truck and pulled the seatbelt through, buckling it in, and he jumped in the front seat. "We moved about a year ago, but it's pretty close to here." He looked in the back at his sleeping kids. "What time is it?"

She grabbed Troy's phone and touched the screen. It took a second, but a picture of three kids under a Christmas tree flashed across the screen. The time and date came quickly after.

"1:49." She glanced outside at the planes. "In the morning."

"I knew it was morning. What did you think I was, a fucking idiot? The only FUCKING idiot in this truck is Gabriella Montez."

He geared his truck, and Gabriella's eyes couldn't help but peak at him. He was trying as hard as he could to be serious, but he was cracking a grin. Gabriella smacked his leg.

"Asshole." She watched as his grin spread wider across his dark face. He pushed the truck into drive and drove towards the exit.

"What's your problem, cunt?"

"I don't know, gigalo."

He narrowed his eyes. "I am not."

"Gigalo! Gigalo!" She giggled and snapped her seatbelt on. "GIGALO!"

"If I'm a gigalo, then you are a prostitute." He chuckled to himself.

"TROY LIKES PENISES!" She grinned. "You like to suck dicks hard and make them cum right in your mouth."

He opened his mouth to protest.

"AND YOU SWALLOW!" She laughed. "YOU SWALLOW!"

"Disgusting." He shook his head. "How about you? Do you swallow cum?"

"Nope. I'm a good girl. I'm a virgin and I never think about fucking any men."

"Oh okay." He glanced over at her. "Just checking. So you've never ate penis?"

"Nope. Never."

"Liar." He said under his breath. "You ate my dick and you liked it."

"I've never sucked dick before, Bolton. You are the liar. The only person that has had their dick in my pussy is Troy Bolton."

"AND SHE ADMITS IT!" He shakes his head as he pulls out of the airport. "So I've been in your puss puss before? Do you have a kitty in your pants?Tienes un gato en los pantelones? (Do you have a cat in your pants)"

"No, pero usted un gato en los pantelones. (No, but you have a cat in your pants)"

"Oh really." Troy smiled. "It's hairy enough down there to be a kitty."

"Nuh-uh! I shave it!"

"What, four years ago?"

"Troy, shut the hell up." She smacked his arm. "You are disgusting."

"So are you, so don't be talking."

"What do you want from me, sex?"

"I might. It's been years."

"Don't you masturbate?" She raised an eyebrow.

"Only little teenage horny boys masturbate. I never had to because I always had a girl waiting for me to fuck her on my doorstep."

"Stop it!" Talon cries from the back of the truck. "Don't fight!"

Gabriella turns around. "Talon, are you awake?"

He looked at her. "You woke me up."

"I'm sorry baby... " She said. "Daddy and I aren't fighting. Go back to sleep."

He whined a little bit. "Can I come up there with you?"

Gabriella sighed. "Daddy, how about it?"

"No Talon. Go back to sleep."

"But daddy- "

"No." Troy stated firmly. "It's time for bed."

"Troy, come on." Gabriella grabbed his loose hand. "Please?"

"It's their bedtime."

She sighed. "I'll wake you up when we get home, okay?"

Talon sighed. "Okay... "

As Talon drifted off to sleep, Gabriella looked into the back seat. "They are beautiful kids, Troy. All of them."

"I know they are, they came from me." He smirked. "Anything that comes from me is beautiful."

"Really? What about me?"

"Even more beautiful." Troy smiled. "They are such good kids too."

"Other than Lyle. He's a mess."

"What do you mean? He's a good kid."

Gabriella turned back around and looked out the windshield. "He's not potty trained, he's a little liar, he loves to wreck, and he's just a little ass. Reminds me of his dad."

"Hey, I'm potty trained. I go all by myself."

She rolled her eyes.

The truck rolled into a parking lot. The headlights reflected off the clean windows.

"Home." He smiled.

"I thought you moved to a house."

"I can't afford it. Kids are expensive. And to make it worse, I just dropped five grand on Christmas and another $1,500 on plane tickets. It's a big apartment, I promise."

...

Troy carried both Aubrey and Lyle as Gabriella unlocked the apartment. She held Talon's hand. They were all sleepy.

"Oh wow, I guess it is big." She opened the door.

When you walk into the door, you walked into the living room, which had a huge wall mounted flat screen TV and a nice leather sofa. The kitchen was directly across from it with nice, stainless steel appliances and marbled countertops. A hallway extended from the left side where the door was. There were four bedrooms, a master bedroom with a bathroom connected to it, and three smaller bedrooms. Lyle and Talon shared a bedroom, and Aubrey had her own bedroom. The extra bedroom was for stocking supplies. The boys had their own bathroom, and Aubrey had her own.

"Yeah, I got it just in case extra kids with DNA tests showed up on my doorstep. That's how Aubrey ended up here. She was left on my doorstep." He started into the bedrooms. "I'll go put these two to sleep, get Talon into bed."

"Come on baby." She grabbed him under his arms and lifted him up, hugging him close. "Which one is your bedroom?"

He pointed to the last door all the way at the end of the hallway.

She followed Troy down to the end of the hallway. He took a right turn and went into a light pink bedroom filled to the rim with ballet things, and Gabriella went into a light blue bedroom. It was filled with football things and was sporty.

She pulled Talon's blanket back and placed his small body on the bed. She covered him up.

He coughed a little. "I don't feel good."

She looked at Troy as he walked into the room. He set Lyle in a crib.

"Troy, is Aubrey still contagious?"

"No, but the doctor said she'll be sick for a few more days."

Gabriella touched Talon's forehead. "Talon is warm."

Troy covered Lyle up. "Is he okay?"

"He just coughed and told me he didn't feel well."

"In their bathroom under the sink is a sticky thermometer that you put on their head. It will tell his temperature. I have to go get the luggage and Marley."

...

Gabriella sat on a toy box as she waited for the test strip to finish. She looked at Troy as he came inside.

"Done yet?" He crossed his arms.

She pulled the test strip off Talon's head and looked at it. "It's at 100.1."

Troy sighed. "Damn it. I'll take him to the doctor tomorrow. It's too late to do anything."

"Will he be okay?" Gabriella stood up and ran her fingers through his hair.

"Of course. He just has the flu, like Brie." Troy grabbed her hand. "Just let him sleep."


	60. Sleepless Night

It was four in the morning.

Troy watched closely at Gabriella, who slept soundly beside him. He ran a finger through her dark hair and wondered how many miracles he had left to use.

He loved his kids so dearly, and he always would, but he had Gabriella...

And now, he had four loves of his life.

How could a man not be happy with that?

He gently kissed her nose and smiled to himself, knowing she was dreaming beautiful dreams and that she was...

Alive.

She was alive.

Her eyes fluttered open. She squinted at him and rolled over the opposite way.

"Aren't you going to sleep?" She said tiredly.

He rolled on his back, set his hands on his stomach, and stared at the ceiling. "I can't sleep."

"Why not?"

"Just thinking about you."

"Oh." Gabriella pulled the blankets above her shoulder.

Silence fell upon the room.

It seemed like an eternity before Troy spoke.

"Do you know who killed you?"

She was silent.

He sighed and swallowed a little, then touched her arm. "Do you know?"

She turned toward him. "Does it matter?"

"Yes, it matters very much to me."

"Well, just forget it." She scooted towards the edge of the bed. "Can you go to sleep? Please?"

Troy pushed the blankets off. "I'm not going to sleep until you tell me if you know who kill you or not."

"Fine, stay up. I could care less."

Silence.

"Okay, I know who killed me. Why does it matter? I'm alive and well."

"It matters because when Aubrey was born, I got a note saying that if I didn't take care of Aubrey, Talon and Lyle would be killed."

Gabriella sat up. "I'm going to the bathroom."

"Please don't ignore me- "

She walked towards the bathroom and slammed the door behind her.

A scream came from Aubrey's room.

Troy sighed and stood up.

He would have to fight to get it out of her.

As he entered Aubrey's room, he noticed Gabriella's sobs coming from the bathroom.

He lifted Aubrey out of her crib and sat in the rocking chair with her.

The rocking chair creaked back and forth as he rocked Aubrey back to sleep. She was reluctant after the door slammed, but she slowly drifted back to sleep. He continued to rock, thinking about how someone could ever threaten to kill his kids. Who wants to kill innocent children, and who would want to kill Gabriella?

He ran his finger through Aubrey's hair and kissed her forehead.

A dark figure stood in the doorway of Aubrey's room.

He looked up, still rocking.

"It was Ally."


	61. Prologue 5

Everything had been blown out in the open.

Aubrey was Gabriella's true daughter, and her only relation to Ally was that she was Aubrey's "surrogate".

Lyle was a result of Gabriella's anger towards Troy for his neglect and mistreatment towards Talon.

Gabriella was sent back to Earth for the sole purpose of sharing her message with Troy, then she was to stay on Earth until her time. She was the only one in Apex that God believed could warn everyone else. His message was that mass destruction would take place, a new era in time, and that murder would take place across the world in mass numbers. Gabriella's case was the first, and there would be many, many more.

Ally's purpose for killing Gabriella was that she wanted Troy to pay for what he had done to her. Her murder case had been a regular murder case. She had killed Gabriella on purpose. Since Gabriella was sent back down, the gates of hell had been opened, thus causing the worldwide murders to happen. The demons will soon possess whoever they can find, other than Gabriella, Troy, and their three kids, who are protected by God from the madness.

Troy will murder, but it will not be a result of the demons.

The worldwide murder outbreak and the demons are unknown to Gabriella and Troy, and the rest of the world for that matter, but they do know one thing.

The world will soon collapse around them, and only two people can break the spell of the demons.

Troy Bolton and Gabriella Montez.


	62. Revenge

Ring around the rosie, pocket full of posies, ashes, ashes, we all fall DOWN.

"I will NOT tolerate this. She will die. She will die."

He hunted through the patches of corn. Every turn was a new stalk. None lead to his victim.

"YOU FUCKING BITCH, GET BACK HERE-"

"Please don't hurt me Troy, PLEASE! We have a daughter together, our beautiful little girl Aubrey!"

His blood boiled. Nothing else made him more mad than her lies. She had hidden it all this time, and she was going to pay for the four years of his life without Gabriella. His boys suffered, his daughter suffered, and HE suffered. He will never let it happen again.

"Troy, please understand!" He could hear the sobs in her voice, the desperation. "I didn't mean to!"

Troy couldn't imagine how terrible she was feeling. She knew it was going to end. Troy was much faster than her. He had went to college for football, for crying out loud. If you can't run in football, then you're screwed.

The corn stalks were tough and itchy, but he kept on going.

He heard her cries for help, her desperation to get away from him, and he wasn't going to give her the benefit. He raced towards her pice faster than even she could comprehend.

He pulled apart corn stalks, crushing them under his feet, and listening to the juices flow out of them. He knew that he was going to take a life, and it would be tonight.

"PLEASE!" She screams as she can hear Troy getting closer. "DON'T HURT ME!"

Troy spotted her. The blonde hair was short and curly, messy with her running, and her makeup was smeared all over her face. Her clothes were in tatters from their fight earlier, and she didn't even have a pair of jeans on. All that showed was a pair of black underwear.

He grabbed her arm and slammed her into the ground. She screamed and squirmed and cried out, but Troy socked her in the face and blood spewed from her nose. She let out an earth shattering scream. Troy pinned her hands behind her back with a flimsy corn stalk and stuffed her mouth with the sharp corn husks. He sat on her kicking legs.

She was all his. He was not going to let her go.

He looked to the side, and there lies a piece of broken glass. Ally had been holding it, hoping to defend herself, but it wasn't going to help. She dropped it when Troy threw her on the ground.

"You little bitch..." Troy spat in her face. "You tortured my boy for four years..."

She muffled a few words through her sobs, but they were indecipherable. He grasped the piece of glass tightly in his hand. The blood ran down the piece of glass.

"I've waiting four years for this. Four god damn years." He said. "Do you hear me?"

She stared into his eyes, full of fear.

"DO YOU HEAR ME?!"

She cried harder.

And then, it was over.

He disposed of her in the gulf, with the sharks. They gobbled her up quickly.

He had a three hour drive home, with an injured hand. He didn't think of her at all. It was just surreal to him.

When he got home, it was morning. Gabriella was up and getting Talon ready for preschool, while Lyle and Aubrey were eating breakfast. Troy walked in, casually, ready to get the day going.

"Hey, where were you all night?" Gabriella is holding Talon in her arms when she comes out of the hallway. "Aubrey cried for you all night and Lyle and Talon are asking for you."

"Daddy!" Talon slides down from Gabriella and hugs his legs. "I missed you!"

Troy couldn't say a word. He was trying to come up with an excuse.

"I... I was down with my friend at the bar..."

It was better than telling Gabriella he killed his ex girlfriend.

"Troy! What are you thinking?! You idiot! You can't go back to-"

"Gabriella, please..." He holds his hand up. "Just stop-"

"What the hell did you do to your hand?!" She grabs his hand and gasps at it. "You need stitches!"

"I broke a glass bottle. No! I'm not going to a hospital!" He jerks his hand away. "Just... Just leave me the fuck alone!"

He enters the bedroom and slams the door in rage. Talon stands there, in shock, and Gabriella quickly grabs him up in her arms. "Let's get you off to school."

"But daddy-"

"Daddy's just a little mad right now." Gabriella kisses the side of his dad. "Come on, the bus is going to be here soon."

...

Troy was waiting in the apartment when Gabriella opened the door. His hand was neatly wrapped.

"Gabriella..." Tears are falling down his cheeks and he motions for Lyle's bedroom. "Lyle, take Aubrey and go play in your room. Shut the door."

For once, Lyle obeys.

Troy sits on the arm of the chair, sobbing. Gabriella locks the door.

"Troy, where were you last night? And don't lie." She crosses her arms.

"I killed her, Gabriella. I killed her and it was terrible..."

Marley comes to greet Gabriella at the door, and Gabriella picks her up. "We'll Marley is right here. Are you sure you killed her? I know she's been getting on your nerves."

Troy shook his head. "No, not Marley. Ally. I slaughtered her. She was screaming and crying and I was raged..."

"Oh Troy..." She sets Marley down as tears begin to flow. "You'll go to prison..."

"They won't find out. They won't." Troy says. "I dumped her in the gulf. I went to New Orleans to find her and I fed her to the sharks. They won't find her."

"What were you thinking?! I told you that she didn't mean it! Troy, she was angry! Couldn't you just leave it the hell alone?! Was getting me back not enough?"

"Gabriella, I had to avenge your death! She wasn't going to get away with it!"

"You are a FUCKING idiot!" She sobs and grabs his shoulders, staring into his eye. "AN IDIOT!"

She slammed the door. Life as he knew it was over.


	63. Very Important Notice!

Yes, I know it has been ages.

I have not stopped writing, nor do I ever think I will! I was very busy with school, I have two dogs to take care of, my third died, my uncle came from Idaho, I've been gardening, my mom got sick... And it's been such a huge mess. I'm on summer break now and I'm ready to write some more. I am definitely going to put some time aside every day to write again. I know I have made some false promises, but school and family are more important. Now, I will have all the time in the world to write for you guys (if you're still there).

I'm going to finish Rocking Chair in the next few chapters. District 16 I think I may scratch. After I am done with Rocking Chair, I am only going to do one story at a time. Two or three is just too much for me! Since I've been gone, I've taken a creative writing class and have had my English teacher help me with my writing skills. I have improved quite a bit. xD

Please comment on this and let me know if you guys are still here.


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